


Le Nozze di Figaro

by zanetashadoe



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, M/M, Opera AU, alternatively known as waffle house au, character/relationships will update as they appear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2020-10-17 06:30:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 23,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20616542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zanetashadoe/pseuds/zanetashadoe
Summary: At 28, Sora's pretty much given up on finding The One. His busy career seems to be the cause of every breakup, but giving up music is not an option for him. When he and Kairi are hired for a production ofLe Nozze di Figaro, the last thing Sora expects to find is romance. But the guy playing the Count just might be the person Sora's been looking for.





	1. Se vuol ballare

**Author's Note:**

> this fic is dedicated to all musicians who have read a music au and thought "oh god thats not how this works". this is my first time writing chapter fic so i have no idea how long updates will take. please enjoy, and i hope you'll stick with it!

If there was one thing Sora really missed about undergrad, it was going to Waffle House late at night after opera rehearsal. He and Kairi had become best friends during one of these customary trips their freshman year, complaining about anything from the directors incompetence to the rumors about next semester’s production to their theory teacher’s incredibly quiet voice. There was no better way to bond with other singers than to commiserate in the struggles of being a voice major over waffles and scrambled eggs. And coffee, because when they got back home there would be scores to analyze, compositions to be worked on, and music history papers to be written.

The assignments were something Sora didn’t miss, but it was hard to get the Waffle House Moment as a professional. Especially since he and Kairi had gone separate ways since graduation. Kairi went on to study conducting and eventually got a job at a university, while Sora continued on the difficult road of being a performer. It was hard to keep in touch when Sora was busy traveling from job to job across the world, but he and Kairi managed to stay friends thanks to the internet. Now, after years of only being able to keep up through Skype calls and Facebook updates, Sora was on his way to Kairi’s house where he was staying for his next job. He and Kairi would be singing together in a production of Le Nozze di Figaro near Kairi’s university. Sora remembered Kairi calling him the second she got the cast list, almost shouting and forcing him to jerk the phone away from his ear. He couldn’t help but grin as he remembered her enthusiasm. Not only had they been cast in the same production, but they would also be playing the main couple Figaro and Susanna, something they had joked about singing together once before.

It wasn’t Sora’s first time playing Figaro by a long shot, but singing it with Kairi as his operatic partner in crime would make it special. He chuckled at the idea of him and Kairi feigning a romance for the audience as he pulled into the driveway of her townhome, wondering what kind of stage kiss Kairi would want to do. It was always easier to negotiate stage romance with a friend rather than a stranger.

A quick “im here!!! :D” text and a knock later, Kairi was embracing him on her front porch.

“Sora! How long has it been since I’ve seen you in person?”

Sora gasped for air in Kairi’s tight hold before responding, “A few years, right? I went to see your choir at that national conference.”

“Oh right, and we went to that bar after…” Kairi trailed off, trying to recall the hazy memory. Sora remembered she had definitely drank more than a director on a school trip should have, but it wasn’t like they had many chances to get together and relax. 

In the present Sora was patiently waiting for her to invite him inside, which she did quickly while attempting to help carry his luggage.

“Holy shit, what did you put in here? Did you bring a whole humidifier or something?”

“That and a neti pot. You know my cords are sensitive, Kairi,” Sora said jokingly, but the weight of the suitcase said otherwise.

Kairi led him past the living room complete with a baby grand piano, and into what he assumed was the guest room. It was sparsely decorated, but there was a picture frame of Kairi and castmates at a curtain call from years ago, judging by her haircut, sitting next to a lamp on the bedside table. While Kairi made a scene out of setting Sora’s suitcase on the bed, Sora walked over to the bedside table to examine the picture.

“When was this taken? I don’t remember these costumes.”

Kairi leaned over the bed to look at it, smiling fondly, “Oh yeah, that was at that young artist program I went to the summer before senior year, in Germany. We were doing Don Giovanni, and I was singing Zerlina.”

“Oh right I remember that, I was super jealous of you! And who’s that guy in the center, Giovanni? He’s pretty cute!” Kairi rolled her eyes at Sora’s exclamation, long over his distractibility when it came to guys.

“His name’s Riku, I still have him on Facebook I think,” Kairi chuckled, “He knew he was good and he was kind of a dick about it. But, that’s singers for you.”

Sora grinned, “And he wasn’t even a tenor? I’m shocked.”

They both laughed as Sora set the picture frame back on the side table, each thinking of singers they knew with over-inflated egos. Then Sora remembered something even more important than cute boys:

“Soo, what’s for dinner?” Sora asked eagerly, following Kairi back out of the guest room and into the hallway. 

She considered their options for a moment. “Well, I could always order take-out. But I think I might have enough stuff in the fridge to make a real dinner here. I forgot to go shopping before you got here,” Kairi admitted. Sora followed her into the kitchen to check her fridge, while Kairi looked through her cupboards. 

“How do you feel about spaghetti? I just found some noodles and pasta, and I think there’s lettuce in the bottom drawer we could make salads with!”

Sora’s face lit up, “Have you ever known me to say no to pasta?”

\---

“Mmph,” Sora articulated, mouth full of spaghetti and meatballs, “Thish ish really guh!”

Kairi struggled to keep her mouth closed while she laughed, trying not to stoop to Sora’s level of poor eating habits.

Sora finally managed to swallow before he continued, “I should really cook more. Fast food and take-out gets pretty old after a while.”

“You’re 28 years old and you still don’t know how to cook?” Kairi nearly shouted, “Sora, please tell me you know how to make more than cup noodles and frozen dinners?” 

“Of course I know how! I just don’t usually have the time, is all,” Sora protested. It was busy work being a singer, and any moment that was wasted on cooking was a moment he could have spent practicing. However, it was true that the last thing he had “cooked” was microwaved mozzarella sticks from the freezer section.

Desperate to change the subject lest he reveal the truth about his poor eating habits, Sora brought up something very important from his past:

“Hey, do you remember how we used to always go to Waffle House after rehearsal? And we would talk shit about everything and everyone?”

“Oh my god,” Kairi exclaimed, giving up on eating politely. “I miss it so much! Remember when we were there at like four in the morning, complaining about our new choir director and he walked in?”

Sora’s eyes lit up, spaghetti immediately forgotten. “How could I forget? That was the weirdest thing ever and he didn’t even eat anything, just drank a coffee. God, and he even came over and talked to us! He was such a strange guy…”

“I know right? I used to hate him so much, and look where I am now. Am I any different than he is?” Kairi asked, pondering her own strange habits as an adult who was also a conductor.

“Of course not! Well, maybe. Not that weird though.” Sora only added the last part to save himself from Kairi’s wrath. He was certain there must be things she did that students thought were crazy. Such was the fate of being a professor, there wasn’t a single one that was normal. Especially not music professors.

“Oh shut up, Sora. You would be the weirdest professor ever, making goofy faces at your students whenever they try to sing. They would probably burst out laughing instead of doing what you told them to!”

“That is such a lie. My faces are important and not at all goofy.” Sora crossed his arms and made what he considered to be a serious face to prove his point. It clearly wasn’t helping his case since Kairi was now red in the face from laughing at him.

“I bet you would do that thing, too,” she struggled to breathe through her giggles, “where you would wave your arms around like crazy and no one would know what it meant!”

“Lies! Slander! You wound me!” Like a true opera singer Sora flung an arm over his forehead as he slumped back in his chair, complete with a woeful expression.

Kairi just smiled at him, “I’ve missed you so much. I still can’t believe we’re actually getting to sing together after all this time. I can’t wait to hear that superstar voice that’s got you traveling all over the world! I haven’t missed your Met debut, have I?” 

Kairi was teasing, but it was close to the point in Sora’s career where it was a possibility. Sora had been one of the most driven students in their school, always the first one to show up in the music building and the last to leave. His dream was to sing everywhere he could, to move as many people with his talent as possible. It was easy to see that with his ambition, Sora would be well-known in the opera world in the next ten years.

Sora ducked his head in an attempt at being humble, “You know I would never debut at the Met without telling you first! In fact, you'd be the first to know. I might even call you on the phone instead of texting!”

“I’m so honored, a real phone call? That means a lot coming from you,” Kairi joked.

“Yeah, yeah, I know I need to get better at that. But I’m here now, and we’re singing together! And you’re going to be my bride, Susanna,” Sora sang with a shit-eating grin.

Kairi rolled her eyes, “You say that like you aren’t going to fall head over heels for the first guy you meet there that pays you any attention.” 

“Okay, that is so not true. It has to be a cute guy. Like that guy from the picture earlier. I’m older now and my taste is much more sophisticated.” Sora secretly hoped Kairi would momentarily forget about the last guy(s) he had been involved with.

Fortunately for Sora, Kairi was done with those particular shenanigans and had moved on to the important business at hand. 

“We have rehearsal on Monday, so do you want to run through stuff tonight or tomorrow? I know we’ve both done Nozze before, but it’s been a while for me.”

“Normally I’d say we should go over stuff tonight but, I did drive eight hours to get here and I’m kind of exhausted. We should be fine if we just rehearse tomorrow. Do you know any of the other singers?”

Kairi shook her head, “No, I didn’t really even read the whole e-mail if we’re being honest here.”

“Oh thank God, me neither...I should get better about that some time. Anyways,” Sora turned his attention back to the meal, “this spaghetti is fucking awesome.”

\---

Of course Sora knew that he missed Kairi, but as he lay in bed falling asleep the night before their first rehearsal he realized just how much he had missed her. It was difficult, being friends with people all over the world. Sometimes he got to see them again, and sometimes he could only keep up on Facebook. Promises were always made at the end of productions and programs, but keeping them was a huge feat. Sora had two degrees and yet there was so much they didn’t teach. Most of all, how to have a successful relationship.

Watching his friends get married and settle down was troubling for Sora. It seemed that every time he opened his Facebook, another friend's wedding pictures were being posted. Even Kairi had settled down once she became a teacher, dating a woman in the foreign languages department. He knew that he wouldn’t give up his career for anything, but it was hard to find a guy that was interested in dating someone who was gone half the time, and sleeping or practicing the other half. 

It wasn’t that Sora wasn’t a devoted lover, he was. He was the best at surprise dates (because his partners never knew when he would be back), extravagant texts detailing his love (because he wasn’t there in person), and he could sing a love song like no one else. No matter how in love he was, music always came first. It was difficult for guys outside the profession to understand. It wasn’t that he was a workaholic, it was just that work was often in the way. 

Sometimes Sora could build a romance during a production, but it always fizzled out shortly after it started. The problem with dating guys who were musicians is that they also lead busy lives. Not only would they both be busy but they would be busy at opposite times, leaving little to no time for anything resembling a healthy and happy relationship.

Sora wondered if he just had bad luck. He was an excellent singer, affectionate, and even a bit good looking if he did say so himself. But after years of dating with little success, he was beginning to wonder if a relationship was in the cards for him. There had to be someone out there who could make it work with Sora’s busy schedule. Maybe there was even someone that would make him consider settling down.

All he could do now was hope that someone would come into his life sooner rather than later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you can find me on twitter @zanetashadoe where i post incessantly about this au


	2. Non so piu cosa son, cosa faccio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora enacts a plan and drags Kairi along with him.

One of Sora’s favorite rehearsals when preparing a show was the first one. A natural extrovert, it was exciting for him to meet the other singers, directors, and coaches. He chatted idly with Kairi as they walked into the building, wondering how everyone would sound and if they would be friendly. Sora’s worst nightmare was meeting a singer that was focused on competing with their colleagues instead of working together to make a great show. As he and Kairi entered the theater, he saw something that ended their casual conversation.

“Oh my god, Kairi,” Sora stopped dead in his tracks, grabbing Kairi’s arm with the hand not occupied with coffee. “It’s that guy! The cute one, the one in that picture in the bedroom!”

“Sora, you just scared the shit out of me!” Kairi reprimanded, gently prying Sora’s fingers off of her.

“I think this is destiny,” he stage-whispered, “What are the odds?”

“You know I love you, but I really don’t think it’s that crazy. We’re opera singers. You see everyone again eventually.”

“Look Kairi, it’s been so long since I’ve had a real relationship, and now this guy is randomly here after I saw him in a picture two days ago? There’s no way it’s not-- oh my God he’s looking over here, act natural.”

“Shut up, it’s probably because he recognizes me. Hi Riku!” Kairi waved good-naturedly while Sora attempted to hide behind her, not unlike a shy child hiding behind his mother. 

Across the theater Riku waved back, though he looked mildly concerned at what was happening behind Kairi. Not concerned enough to stop unpacking his bag, though. 

Behind Kairi, Sora groaned. “Now he’s gonna think I’m weird! This is the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Used to Sora’s tendency to exaggerate, Kairi moved forward to place her bag in a seat and began to unpack. Deflating, Sora followed suit. As he pulled things out of his bag, he took the opportunity to observe the theater they would be rehearsing and performing in. It looked in need of a face lift, but perhaps that was part of its charm. Having performed around the world, Sora had sung in both better and worse places. At least this theater didn’t have carpeted walls. He hated when the acoustic was damp and he couldn’t hear his voice as well. 

There were paintings on the walls and an ornate carving of cherubim above the stage, attempting to evoke a classical feeling. It wasn’t necessarily gaudy, but part of Sora thought that the walls could do with a solid color rather than decor. In the back, he could see a projector, and he prayed to the powers that be that there would be actual backdrops and not a PowerPoint slideshow projected from the back. One could only hope for the best in a situation like this. Sora shuddered at a memory from his undergrad in which his director had handpicked backgrounds from Google Images. Sora didn’t think he would ever understand the thought process behind most of the pictures.

Shaking his head to chase the memory away, Sora moved on stage where the singers were gathering and taking seats. He worried for a minute about where to sit, but quickly settled on sitting directly in the center of the semicircle of chairs around the piano. The rehearsal pianist was already in place, looking decidedly grumpy with a large coffee sitting on the ground next to him. Sora noted that he had one of those fancy pedals to turn pages on an iPad and immediately decided that it would be difficult to get along with this guy.

Just as Sora was getting to know his neighbor, a guy just a bit younger than him with short blond hair and a penchant for checkerboard patterns, the director came on stage and introduced himself. Sora took the opportunity to cast furtive glances at Riku across the room and totally missed the directors introduction. If his concentration was gone this early, it was going to be one hell of a rehearsal.

\--

Sora seemed to shift continually in his seat, only partly because of how uncomfortable the seat was. Mostly he was anxious to put a plan into action to befriend and then steal the heart of the man sitting across the stage from him. Sora had had many flings with cast mates, but something about Riku made him nervous but excited in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. There was a lot of truth in what Kairi had said earlier, the music world was small and singers often found each other again whether for better or worse. Kairi knew this well as well as anyone, since her first college girlfriend seemed to pop up at every other gig she had. It was important to break up amicably when the chances of working together were so high.

Despite it all, Sora couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe this was fate. How often was it that he met someone just days after commenting on their attractiveness in a photo almost a decade old? Sora refused to chalk it up to plain old coincidence - and in the back of his mind, he knew he was a little desperate.

Of course, just when Sora was completely lost in thought he completely forgot to sing when he was supposed to. He felt his whole face heat up as the pianist muttered something under his breath and began playing at the top of the scene. Sora hoped that across the stage Riku hadn’t been paying attention. He was looking down at his music but that didn’t mean he was actually engaged in what was going on. Once the scene passed he went back to his plan. It would be best to hang out in a group, but it was a bit early to plan a sightseeing outing. Sora thought of several ideas such as movies or art museums when he remembered his favorite college outing: post-rehearsal Waffle House.

It was at this moment that Sora decided that if Riku didn’t like Waffle House, then he wasn’t worth courting at all. Sora wondered who else might join them. Kairi of course would never turn it down, and they rode together in the same car so she had no real choice in the matter. He wondered if the guy next to him would be interested, or any of the girls. The soprano playing the Countess gave off a strong “don’t even look at me” vibe, so she was probably out of the question. The woman next to her with dyed blue hair seemed to have something going on with a brunette man across the room from her, if her glances at him and subsequently her phone meant anything at all. Sora figured he would just make a loud invitation once the rehearsal ended. If Riku didn’t respond at first, Sora would just get Kairi to invite him since they had gone to a program together. She would complain, but Sora knew that she would always come through for him. That’s what best friends are for.

\---

Sora was just about to check his watch for the umpteenth time when the director finally decided that rehearsal was over. The last time he checked it had been around 10:58, which meant that it was probably now 11. As a professional, Sora tried not to show a look of relief on his face but a small sigh did manage to escape. It was time to set his plan into action. He just had to get Kairi on board.

“Hey, Kairi,” Sora approached from behind “I’ve come up with a plan.”

A bemused smile crossed Kairi’s face, “A plan to do what, exactly?”

“To win the heart of that gorgeous guy over there,” Sora explained while gesturing with his head in a way that was far less subtle than he thought it was. “But I need your help to do it.”

Kairi shook her head as she continued packing up, “I have no idea why I would have anything to do with that.”

“Because,” Sora pouted, “you already know him! Just follow my lead and it’ll all be fine.”

“Not really, we just- oh my God Sora are you doing it now?” Kairi reached out to stop Sora from doing something potentially stupid as he turned away from her, but there was no stopping him once a plan of his was in motion.

“Hey, does anyone want to grab some Waffle House in a minute?” Sora used his stage voice to attract the attention of all twelve people in the room.

Behind him, Kairi’s face was in her hands. Across the room however, he seemed to be getting a positive reception.

The blond guy Sora had talked to earlier, whose name he had since learned was Roxas, nodded enthusiastically while the short girl next to him shouted, “Oh hell yeah!”

One blonde woman rolled her eyes at the invitation, but the one with the kinder demeanor smiled and started to head over. The two people Sora thought were a couple politely declined, which furthered his suspicions. He’d have to add everyone on Facebook to find out the minuscule details of their lives and also what they looked like in high school, because that was always fun.

Sora turned to Kairi excitedly before realizing that Riku hadn’t responded. He quickly pouted at her, ready to put on puppy dog eyes as well before Kairi rolled her eyes and started across the theater.

“Hey, Riku! Wanna catch up?” She nodded towards Sora and the small group forming around him.

“I really would, but I’m still getting the hang of the bus system and I’d probably be lost for hours before I made it home,” Riku chuckled.

“You can ride with us, we have an extra seat,” Sora called out, negating any reason to have Kairi talk to Riku instead. 

Riku looked at Sora for a moment before smiling, “Alright then, I’ll go with you guys.”

“Alright! Let’s head out then,” Sora grinned and slung his bag over his shoulder followed by his soon-to-be friends.

\---

“Sorry for the mess,” Sora said as he, Kairi, and Riku piled into his ancient minivan. “I never really get a chance to unpack, always on the road, y’know?”

“Sort of,” Riku laughed as he pushed several scores, clothes, and empty metal water bottles off of his seat and into the next. 

Kairi had called shotgun, possibly out of revenge for getting roped into another scheme by Sora. This also put her in the position of navigator, but it didn’t seem like she minded. The others (Xion and Namine, Sora had just learned) were riding separately since they were staying in a different part of town. With the three of them settled in, Sora jerked the car backwards and then onto the road.

“So,” Riku began slowly, clearly nervous and wanting to break the silence that had settled over the car, “Do you guys both travel a lot?”

“Oh no,” Kairi said, “I actually teach and direct a choir at the university here so I’m pretty settled. I don’t really perform much anymore, but this was an opportunity for Sora and I to do something together.”

“That’s sweet, so you guys are long distance then? That seems pretty hard.”  
It was a miracle that Sora didn’t drive off the road. Kairi’s head hit the back of her seat as she laughed, while Sora sputtered at the wheel.

“I-- we’re not,” Sora struggled, “we’re gay!”

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry-- I’m gay too. I mean, that was rude of me to assume and I shouldn’t have--” Riku’s backpedaling stopped as he broke into a full belly laugh along with the other two. 

“Thank God,” Sora breathed as wiped a tear from his eye. Out loud he said, “Never assume a musician is straight, Riku! You should know better than that, or are you new at this?” He flashed a grin in the rear view mirror so Riku would know he that he was teasing. 

Finally recovered, Kairi piped up, “But what about those two today, the blue-haired lady and that guy who kept making faces at each other? And checking their phones too, which I completely disapprove of!”

Sora made no mention of the few texts they had exchanged during the rehearsal, distracted by the gossip. “So you noticed it too?”

“Did you see her ring? That was definitely on her ring finger.”

Riku spoke up, “You mean Aqua and Terra?”

“Holy shit, you know them?” Kairi nearly shrieked with zero regard for her vocal cords. “Wait, we need to save this for when we get to the Waffle House,” she scrutinized her phone, “It looks like it’s just a few minutes away!”

“Awesome,” Sora shouted. “I’m so glad we’re doing this again. Waffle House used to be our post-rehearsal routine,” he explained to Riku, “I’m super excited to get to know everyone!”

“Me too,” Riku smiled at Sora’s reflection in the mirror before looking back out of the window.

It seemed like Sora’s mission was going to be a success. Maybe not long term, but for right now it looked like Riku was happy to sit in his messy car and joke along with him and Kairi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im genuinely shocked at the amount of attention this has gotten! thank you everyone reading this and i hope youre enjoying it! things should pick up next chapter, so look forward to that.


	3. Non piu andrai, farfallone amoroso

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the long awaited Waffle House scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's some musical jargon in this chapter so here are some definitions:
> 
> pants/trouser role - a role written for a "female" or treble voice, but is a male character. often sung by mezzo-sopranos  
castrato/castrati (pl.) - a man who was castrated in his youth, to perform as a soprano as an adult. very popular in the 16th/17th centuries  
Liszt/Bach/Mozart - composers

The party met outside of the closest Waffle House, and found a booth in the corner big enough for their party. Sora made sure to slip into the seat next to Riku, with Namine following after. Surprisingly, they weren’t the only customers at such a late hour. Even so, a waitress came quickly to take their orders. The orders ranged in size from a simple coffee for Roxas to a Grand Slam for Sora. Once the waitress walked away, Sora decided it was time to really get the conversation going. As an extrovert, one of his favorite things to do was to meet new people and befriend them. This usually put him in the position of starting conversations, and something he had learned was that although people generally hate ice breakers, they do like talking about themselves.

“So how did you all end up here? I’m here because Kairi and I,” he gestured across the table,   
“went to undergrad together and she gave me a heads up about the program.” Sora turned eagerly to look at Riku, who was sitting beside him. 

“I was recommended this program by Terra, actually,” Riku started, but Kairi eagerly interrupted.

“Ok, so are those two married or not? I need to know,” she nearly shouted in excitement, disturbing the gentle vibe of the late night Waffle House. 

Riku laughed, “Yes, they’re married. They kind of inspire me to believe in love,” he let out a dramatic sigh for effect. “I’m joking, but only a little bit”.

Namine let out a soft “aww” sound while Roxas rolled his eyes next to her. Sora felt his face heat up despite himself.

“Anyways,” Riku continued, “I met Terra at a summer program and he gave me some important life lessons when I was just starting out.”

Kairi snickered, “Was that before or after I met you in Berlin?”

“Oh god, don’t remind me. I was such an asshole back then.” 

So he was humble. Sora liked humble.

“Alright, alright, enough about you,” Roxas interrupted. “I graduated from BYU a couple years ago and I’ve been trying to do the whole singing thing since then. I’ve done a few pay-to-sings, but this is my first time getting paid to sing. Which is way better than bartending, by the way.”

The conversation stopped momentarily as the waitress came back with food. Though she brought out cream with Roxas’ coffee, he paid no attention to it and took a huge gulp as plates of food were being passed out. Sora winced as he watched. He wouldn’t go near coffee if there wasn’t whipped cream involved.

“Wait, Roxas, you’re a mormon?” Xion asked between bites of sausage.

“Ugh, no. Well I used to be, but I pretty much stopped after I graduated.”

“Mm, that makes sense,” Namine took a swig of orange juice. “I’ve had a pretty normal time so far, I’m fresh out of grad school from Tennessee. But what I really want to say is, did y’all know that Liszt became a monk before he died?”

“You’re fucking lying,” Roxas said immediately.

“Yeah, wasn’t he like the world’s biggest playboy?” Xion chimed in. 

“No, it’s true,” Sora exclaimed, proud to remember a music history fact. “I learned that in one of my song literature classes and everyone was shook!”

He turned his attention back to his food. Having just finished his hashbrowns, which were smothered, covered, and topped, Sora began to douse his chocolate chip covered waffles in syrup. Roxas noticed, and started to snicker.

“Is that sweet enough for you?”

“Oh come on, we can’t all lack taste buds like you.” Sora gestured at Roxas’ bitter coffee. 

“First of all, I do have taste buds. Which is why I would never eat an abomination like that.”

Xion put down the orange juice she was sipping. “There's nothing wrong with chocolate and syrup together. I support you, Sora.”

Kairi grimaced, “No, don’t encourage him!”

“Don’t turn on me now, Kairi!”

“It’s for your own good, you’re going to lose your teeth before you’re thirty! And then you’ll wish you had listened to me.”

While the table laughed, Sora noticed that Riku was covering his smile with his hand, as though to be polite. Sora had to look away, lest he fall in love immediately with this well-mannered man.   
He also noticed that Riku hadn’t really said much yet, either. Maybe he was shy, or maybe he just prefered watching to participating. Either way, Sora found himself glancing back to see Riku gently tucking his long hair behind his ear. He noticed Sora staring, but he just smiled warmly and turned back to the conversation. Sora felt his ears start to burn, and he tried to get back to the conversation as well. 

It seemed that the group had already moved on to another topic. Sora felt nostalgia wash over him in the dim diner lighting. The sounds of coffee being poured, plates being set down with dull thunks, and of course, a rumbling argument among musicians. Though he was mostly surrounded by strangers, he felt right at home. 

“Ok, so,” Namine paused to swallow a mouthful of waffle, “I have this theory that you can’t like both Mozart and Bach, only one of them. What do you guys think?”

Roxas snorted, “That’s an easy one. Bach sucks.”

“Hold on just a second,” Riku set his fork down to let everyone know that shit was about to get real. “You may not think that Bach is fun to sing or maybe you don’t like how it sounds. But you can’t objectively say that Bach sucks!”

“That’s too bad,” Roxas said, pausing to sip his second coffee. “Because that’s what I just did.”

The rest of the table giggled as Riku got more and more riled up at Roxas’ prodding. Sora, however, was caught up in gazing at Riku again. And still pondering how Roxas could possibly be drinking more bitter coffee. 

Sora was jolted out of his reverie with a gentle kick to the shin. Before he could cry out in indignation Kairi hissed across at him, “You’re being way too obvious!”

“Is something wrong?” Riku asked, now distracted from his argument, which had devolved into a series of attacks against Riku’s character, namely putting ketchup on his scrambled eggs. It was clear that Roxas was simply trying to annoy Riku as evidenced by the huge grin on his face.

“Nothing at all,” Sora tried to seem calm but a blush began to creep up his face. 

“Are you sure? Your face is red, do you think you caught something from someone at rehearsal? That happens to me a lot when I travel.”

Sora sputtered as Riku reached forward to touch his forehead, while Kairi tried unsuccessfully to stifle her laughter behind her hand. 

“I’m fine,” Sora shouted, blush in full force. “It’s just a little hot in here, that’s all!”

“So I should put these back, then?” Sora turned to see Xion holding a handful of masks from her bag. The table was silent for a full beat before erupting into laughter. Singers tended to be extremely cautious with their instruments, and Sora wouldn’t be surprised if a few more people had masks in their own bags.

“Damn, she’s really prepared,” Roxas said once the laughter started to die down.

“Thanks but it’s they, actually,” Xion corrected.

“Whoops, my bad. I shouldn’t have assumed,” Roxas apologized.

“That’s alright, I chose one of the most gendered careers there is.”

“It’s lucky you’re a mezzo, then,” Namine chimed in. “There are so many trouser roles!”

Xion chuckled warmly, “Yeah, I do like the whole pants role thing. Sometimes I think I was a castrato in my past life.” They sighed in faux wistfulness while the men at the table visibly cringed. Roxas even threw a hand over his heart and gasped.

“Oh come on,” Kairi chided. “Why does everyone act like castrati are such a big deal?”

“Uhhh, maybe because they had their balls cut off so they could sing high?” Roxas shot back.

“How did they figure that out anyway?” Sora mused, hand on his chin.

“News flash everyone, people have been getting castrated since, like, the dawn of time!” Kairi was now fully invested in the conversation as she began telling a complete history of eunuchs and their place in society. Her hands waved around in her enthusiasm. If Sora remembered correctly, she had written a rather large paper on the subject in grad school. 

Sora watched his new friends fondly. Xion and Namine giggled during Kairi’s tirade, Roxas throwing out a quip here and there, and Riku still looked downright scandalized. Though he was far from the place he called home, the warmth of a Waffle House was a good substitute.

\---

Sora felt a palpable tension in the air as he drove Riku back to where he was staying. It turned out that he had managed to snag an Airbnb at a pretty good price, but it was on the edge of town. It was no wonder he hadn’t wanted to get lost on the bus at night. Kairi and Riku chattered while Sora was engrossed in coming up with his next move. Was it too early to ask Riku out tonight? Should he wait a few days? Would someone else initiate another group outing? What if he waited too long, and another guy asked Riku out? What if he already had a boyfriend? The questions whirled around in his head with no answer in sight. He finally pulled into the driveway, heart beating overtime.

The three began to say their goodbyes, and as Riku stepped out of the car, Sora decided that tonight was not the right time. Courting was all about keeping the other party on their toes. So he was startled when Riku stopped at his open window before going inside.

“So, I suppose a guy like you probably has someone waiting for you back home, huh,” Riku said. It was cheesy and to anyone else it would have seemed awkward, but to Sora it was the most romantic gesture in the world. Which is why he began to stutter on his reply.

“What, I, no I uh, there's, I don’t, actually. Have someone at home. Do...do you?”

Kairi snickered next to Sora as she watched the two attempt to flirt with each other. Luckily for her, they were too caught up in each other to remember she was even in the car. 

“No,” Riku leaned over, resting his arm on the door as a light blush dusted his cheeks in the moonlight. “Do you want to grab a coffee sometime later this week?”

“Yes, of course!” Sora’s enthusiastic response was louder than necessary. But then, Sora usually was. “So, it’s a date, then?”

“Yep,” Riku grinned, “thanks again for the ride, I appreciate it!” And with that, he left Sora staring, open-mouthed until he was inside the house. A smile slowly grew on his face before Kairi brought him back to reality.

“That was really cute and all, but can you process that after you drive us home?”


	4. Voi che sapete che cosa e amor

Since Riku had asked Sora out, Sora hadn't stopped thinking about him. He focused hard on the music during rehearsal and his practice time, but outside of that he was so caught up in the excitement and fear of dating. They exchanged smiles in rehearsal, but Sora was afraid to do much more. Would Riku still like him once they talked more? Would Sora still like Riku once they talked more?

It kept him up at night, imagining what Riku might say or do. Sora would toss and turn, imagining what Riku’s lips would feel like if they kissed. Would Sora have to stand on his tiptoes, or would Riku lean down slowly, tilting Sora’s chin up to press their lips together gently? Either way, Sora hoped they would have a kiss, but he didn't know if Riku would think that was too fast. All of his questions would be answered in due time, but that didn’t stop them from whirling around in his head.

Now it was a few hours before their and anxiety bubbled in Sora’s stomach as he threw clothes across the room, searching for the perfect outfit. It was Saturday morning, and he and Riku were going to a local cafe. The whole thing was very chill and low key, which is exactly why Sora was panicking. He didn’t do anything halfway but he definitely wanted to seem relaxed and not like he was taking things too seriously, which of course he was. The more he unpacked, the more it seemed like he was going to have to buy something new. Each piece of clothing was too fancy, too casual, worn too recently. Kairi, who was leaning on the door frame while watching the chaos, sighed loudly.

“I don’t understand why you’re so worried. You’ve been on, like, a million dates before! And this one isn’t even a big deal; it's just brunch.”

“But this is different, Kairi,” Sora paused, setting down a pair of jeans in favor of pulling his hands down his face. “I’m getting older and I want to settle down. I mean, not down down, but like, I wanna make a home with someone. And I kind of haven’t been on a date in...in a long time, actually. Like maybe a year? Well, more like a year and a half. The point is, I am worried about it.”

Kairi walked into the room, and pushed a dress shirt out of the way so she could have a seat on the bed. 

“I know you’re worried, Sora, but I promise it will all be okay. These things happen on their own time. Maybe Riku is that person for you, maybe he isn’t. That’s the whole point of dating,” she pulled the dress shirt into her lap and began folding it. “Just have fun and be yourself. If he doesn’t like you being you, then he’s just not the right guy. And also, I know you weren’t planning on wearing a full suit to brunch!”

Sora laughed, much more relaxed than he was a few minutes ago.

“You’re right, I just get so in my head about this stuff sometimes,” he took a deep breath before muttering, “It’s cool, I’m cool, it’s gonna be fine.”

Kairi smiled softly, “That’s what I’m here for.”

Sora grinned back, a mischievous glint in his eye. “So how are you and your girlfriend? Olette, right?”

“Things are going well, I’m really happy,” Kairi smiled down at her hands, “She’s really great-”

Sora couldn’t contain himself anymore, “So why is it you guys haven’t moved in together?” He started laughing before he even got the sentence out, and Kairi quickly balled up the shirt in her hands and threw it at him.

“Shut up, yes we’ve talked about it,” Kairi’s face was turning red. “Shut up! Stop laughing Mr. “I Want to Settle Down”. And we’ve been dating for six months already, so I wouldn’t joke about me moving too fast.” Kairi’s tone was sharp, but her eyes crinkled with mirth. 

Sora gasped, a little hurt in spite of himself. “Whoa there Ms…” He struggle to think of an insult. “Ms. “Pining and Longing”! Didn’t you used to have a Twitter account specifically to complain about how single you were?”

Kairi pursed her lips, “That was a long time ago. I was a different person then.” She and Sora glared angrily for a few seconds before Kairi finally burst into laughter.

“Okay, okay, so we both have flaws. Let me help you pick out what to wear before you’re late. And please don’t tell me you were thinking seriously thinking of yellow.”

\---

Riku had insisted that he didn’t need a ride to the cafe, so Sora drove into the parking lot alone, about 15 minutes early. Kairi had recommended this place, called The Flying Biscuit. She said it was one of her and Olette’s favorite places and highly recommended the chicken pot pie, although Sora protested that that wasn’t really brunch food. 

He wondered if he should go ahead inside or just scroll through his social media until Riku got there, when he noticed a flash of silver hair in the lobby. It was something simple, but it warmed Sora’s heart that Riku was also the kind of person to arrive ridiculously early to a casual event. 

Sora breathed deeply, quelling the last of his anxiety as he hopped out of his car and into the lobby. 

“Hey,” Sora greeted, unable to keep a huge grin off his face. “I hope you weren’t waiting too long. Did I get the time wrong?”

Riku turned quickly, a little startled. “Oh, hey! You’re good, I only got here a few minutes ago. I just get a little nervous about getting to places on time”

So it was intentional. Sora felt his heart pound in his ears.

“That’s great, I’m glad I wasn’t late,” Sora laughed nervously. “So um, I’ll go let the host know we’re ready!”

\---

All of Sora’s nervousness vanished once they sat down and Riku began to tease him for ordering a sweet tea.

“So I’m going to take a wild guess and say you’re from the south?”

Sora snorted, “You’re completely wrong, actually. I’ve just come to appreciate some parts of Southern culture over the years.”

“Okay, so I fell for a stereotype,” Riku admitted, “where are you really from?”

“A farm in Wisconsin! I went to school up in New York though, which is where I met Kairi who is from the south. I picked up the sweet tea from her. They don’t make it right up north, so she used to make big batches herself.”

“It sounds like you and Kairi are really close,” Riku said just as the aforementioned tea arrived.

“Yep, she’s my best friend! We met during opera workshop our freshman year and haven’t looked back since. We’ve been with each other through thick and thin, even though we live so far apart. She’s from this area, but I’ve been living in New York City for the last few years.”

“Really? I also live in New York City! I’m surprised we haven’t run into each other at Opera America or something.” 

Sora’s heart leapt into his throat. He had to quickly convince himself that it wasn’t fate, there was simply a lot of singing business going on up there.

“That’s funny,” he said out loud. “Where did you grow up?”

"I’m from Hawaii. I liked living there, being close to the sea. I used to play on the beach every day when I was a kid. But at the same time, I felt trapped. I wanted to explore, travel the world. That's why I decided to go to school in the continental US, picked a career that would mean moving around." 

"Whoa, that's so cool! I can relate to that. Back on the farm, things felt so... closed in, even in an open field. And don't give me wrong, I loved working with the animals and just laying down in a field and watching the stars when the work is done, but it just wasn't what I wanted out of life. I wanted more."

The waitress came back with food, a Western omelette for Riku and the chicken pot pie for Sora. He figured it would be rude to ignore Kairi’s suggestion since she had worked so hard on his outfit earlier. 

Riku took a bite out of his omelette,"So how did you know you wanted to sing? "

Sora sighed fondly, looking up at the artwork on the walls."Well I grew up in the church, and my mom put me in the children's choir. Oh man, they knew I was gonna perform early on. I always wanted to be the star of the show." He chuckled and stabbed a piece of chicken with his fork. "It was so ridiculous you know, singing 'Jesus Loves Me' with a bunch of other five year olds and taking it so completely seriously. We had a Christmas Pageant one year, and I was so excited to play the angel that I spent hours at home coming up with the perfect expressions for my lines."

"That's so sweet," Riku smiled warmly, and Sora felt his chest melt. 

\---

The conversation flowed easily as they ate, and before Sora realized how much time had passed, the waitress dropped off a single check. They hadn’t discussed yet who was going to pay. Sora was used to splitting on the first date, but he really liked Riku. Just as he reached his hand out to grab to book, Riku snatched it out of his reach.

“I’ve got it,” he said, but Sora wasn’t going to let it end that easily.

“Please, let me. You’ve been such wonderful company, I couldn’t let you do that.”

“I’m the one who asked you out, so I should be the one to pay.”

“No no, if you hadn’t asked first then I would have. So I should pay.” Sora grabbed the other end of the checkbook. He narrowed his eyes and started to pull, just as Riku did the same.

Despite his determination, his hand went completely slack as Riku said, “You can pay for the next one, then.”

Sora’s mouth gaped open. 

“Has anyone ever told you how cute you are?” Riku asked, sliding his card into the checkbook.

Sora pouted, “That was totally unfair. You’re not allowed to flirt during a battle of will!” 

Riku laughed in earnest and Sora joined in.

"So um, do you maybe want to explore the city after this? I haven't ever been around here long enough to really look around. I think that there are some art stores around here. And uh, I’m having a really nice time," Sora stopped before he said something too cheesy as he rambled, a blush growing on his cheeks.

Riku smiled broadly, "That sounds like fun."

\---

They walked down the street outside the restaurant, searching for shops or art shows to look at. Sora tentatively reached for Riku's hand but withdrew it, chickening out. He turned his head to look across the street, away from Riku so he could gain his composure. He was about to point out a studio when he felt Riku's fingers slide effortlessly in between his own. Sora whipped his head back around to see Riku smiling, eyes crinkling. 

"I'm glad I get to see the city with you." It was simple, and yet Sora felt his heart lurch. 

"Me too. I'm having a lot of fun with you, Riku." Sora said earnestly. 

"I'm glad. Do you want to check out that studio over there? It looks like they have some abstract art there." 

Sora nodded fervently, and Riku led him across the street by hand. It seemed so perfect, so picturesque. 

Sora marveled the walls as they walked inside. Riku held the door which he found endearing, even though he didn’t really like when dates did that. His eyes were drawn immediately to a painting on the back wall.

"Look at that one over there, with the blue and gold. It reminds me of a waterfall! Or a forest in winter." 

Riku looked over where Sora was pointing. He contemplated for a minute, before responding. "It looks kind of like a meteor shower to me. Like, the blue is the night sky and the white looks like stars. And the gold leaf is… just there to look cool." He turned back to Sora, to gauge his response. 

"Oh yeah, I see what you mean! I don’t really know much about visual art, but I like to look at it."

Riku nodded thoughtfully, "That's the most beautiful thing, I think. I like watching other people in galleries, see how other people respond to paintings I liked or didn't like. It's like seeing something through a new light."

Sora squeezed his hand in agreement. He looked up at Riku, who was smiling gently, piercing blue eyes seeming to glow. It took everything in Sora not to stand up on his tippy toes and just kiss those rosy lips. He quickly turned to appraise the other paintings. He wandered forward, still holding on, and Riku followed. 

Sora stopped in front of a huge painting, covered in place orange and red. There were two dark circles across from each other on the canvas, with a light layer of orange over them. Sora turned back to Riku, "What do you think this one is about?" 

"Hmm, give me a second." Sora watched Riku as he studied the painting intently. There was something about his serious face, the focus that made Sora shiver inside. He wondered what it would feel like for Riku to look at him that way.

Still looking at the painting, Riku began to speak. “To me, this one is about love. It’s like the two circles are souls or people who have darkness in their hearts. But between them, something warm and bright is growing. And it even starts to cover them. Like when two people really love each other, they can help each other grow.”

Sora’s heart beat erratically as he looked up at Riku. He had no idea how anyone could get that much from a painting - to him it just looked pretty. But he didn’t have time to contemplate as Riku turned back to him, and tilted Sora’s chin up gently with his hands. Without thinking, Sora’s eyes fluttered shut, and Riku leaned down before pressing their lips together in the sweetest of kisses. Riku pulled back and Sora put his hands on Riku’s chest before stepping up onto his toes. Riku laughed, a short puff of air before he obliged Sora, kissing him again. 

But then Sora remembered that they were in public, and the moment was gone. He settled back down on his heels, face almost as red as the painting. 

“Of course,” Riku said plainly, as if one of the most magical first kisses of Sora’s life hadn’t just happened, “I could be totally wrong. Maybe it’s about a forest fire or something.” He smirked down at Sora, trying to be cool but his blush betrayed him. Yeah, Sora was going to fall in love with this guy.

\---

When Sora walked back into Kairi’s house, he saw she and who he assumed was Olette tangled on the couch, each reading a different book. He tried to sneak past the living room so he wouldn’t bother them, but before he took even three steps Kairi sat bolt upright.

“Where do you think you’re going after your brunch date lasted four hours? Don’t even think about just sneaking into your bedroom without telling me everything that happened.”

Olette giggled next to her, “Hi Sora! I’m Olette, it’s nice to meet you. Kairi’s told me so much about you.” She winked at Sora, but he was too caught up in his afternoon to get embarrassed.

“Nice to meet you too,” Sora waved before turning his gaze to Kairi, “Alright, you got me, so things went well.”

Sora plopped down on the recliner and took a deep breath before beginning, “So you know how I left super early? Well…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay but seriously the flying biscuits pot pie is so. good.


	5. Venite, inginocchiatevi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> now with added plot!
> 
> IMSLP - a website where u can download music that's out of copyright 😎

Sora and Riku hadn’t stopped texting since their date. They texted late into the night about both mundane and important topics: how rehearsal went, favorite opera, favorite childhood memory, life goals, audition packets. 

This was how Sora found himself on Wednesday night while Kairi was out at her church job. If Sora had a more stable life he would probably also have a church job, but with the amount of traveling he did it just wasn’t an option. So, he texted Riku instead.

Sora (7:23): hey whats ur reg mickey ds order??

Riku (7:25): mcchicken, add pickles. why are you thinking about this, are you hungry?

Sora (7:28): OMG yes mcchicky!!!  
Sora (7:28): not exactly but uhhh i do want some mcdo’s  
Sora (7:29): wanna come with? or i could bring to u

Riku (7:33): aww, i always wanted to date an uber eats man. <3

Sora (7:34): 😳  
Sora (7:35): ill be ther in like 15 

\---

Riku answered the door in a matching flannel pajama set. Sora felt warmth spread through his chest. Sora was wearing a baggy t-shirt and gym shorts, complete with a large McDonald’s bag. Riku gave Sora a warm, sleepy smile before stepping aside to let him in.

“I’d say a cheesy porno line, but I think those only apply to pizza delivery.”

“Oh no,” Sora gasped, “I should have offered to get you a large pizza with extra sausage!”

They both giggled as Riku lead Sora into the dining area, taking the bag out of Sora’s hands and setting the food onto the dining table.

“To be fair, I’m actually more of a pepperoni guy.”

“Be honest, how do you feel about pineapple on pizza?”

Riku paused in the unwrapping of his McChicken, giving the question a lot of thought. “I know there’s a lot riding on this but yes, I do like pineapple on pizza.”

Sora’s eyebrows crinkled upwards as his mouth turned into a slight frown. He took a deep breath. “Convince me,” he said.

“Okay, so, the pineapple is sweet, right? And sweet and salty go together. So you get sweetness from the pineapple, and salty from the meat which is your pepperoni or ham. I mean, they serve Hawaiian pizza in a lot of places for a reason. But the biggest point I have is: have you ever actually tried eating pineapple on pizza?” Riku’s cheeks were flushed on account of him hardly pausing to breathe. It made Sora a little breathless, too.

“You’re right, I haven’t tried it before. Sounds like you’ve had people ask you about that before, huh?”

Riku laughed, “Is it that obvious? I grew up eating it that way, so when it became a whole internet thing a few years ago I kept getting teased about it. Not that I actually care that much about pizza toppings.” It was clear that Riku did care that much, but Sora found that endearing. He was a man with principles. 

“Well, you’ll have to show me sometime.”

Riku responded elegantly with a “mmph” sound as he dug into his McChicken. Sora laughed and started working on his own Big Mac Meal. Sora really liked the part of Riku that was thoughtful and intelligent, but it was good to see that he could also gobble down McDonalds in his pajamas. It was fun, getting to know someone and seeing all the different parts of them. So far, Sora was perfectly charmed.

They moved to the couch to watch TV, and Sora was surprised to learn that Riku’s Airbnb had cable. They settled on the food channel, and started watching some sort of competition. Sora cuddled up to Riku’s side, resting his head on Riku’s shoulder. They stayed like this for half an episode, before Sora looked up to see Riku looking down.

They just looked at each other for a moment, drinking each other in as if time were standing still. Sora reached up to tuck a strand of silver hair behind Riku’s ear, before trailing his fingers down Riku’s face and across his lips. He parted them slightly, and Sora could hear his own heartbeat in his ears. If the TV was still on, he couldn’t hear it.

“Can I kiss you,” Sora asked breathlessly.

“Please,” Riku's reply was soft, and then Sora’s lips were on his.

It was gentle at first, they hadn’t kissed since their date. Sora didn’t want to move things too quickly, as was his usual tendency. Riku parted his lips again, and Sora licked into his mouth. He hadn’t realized how badly he had wanted this. He wasn’t sure how long it had been since they started when Sora pushed Riku’s chest until Riku was laying down on the couch, and Sora was seated on his hips. He kissed hungrily, biting Riku’s lip gently and earned a small noise for it. 

After some time, Sora pulled away, breath coming out in short pants. He composed himself for a moment before whispering, “Wow.”

Riku let out a breathy chuckle. “This might be too early to say something like this, but I really like you Sora.”

Sora leaned down so that their foreheads were touching. “That’s good, because I really like you too, Riku.”

When Sora went to bed that night, he dreamed of soft kisses, silver hair, a sense of peace and a warm feeling.

\---

One evening on the way home from rehearsal, Sora noticed that Kairi seemed troubled. She was driving this time and her knuckles were white as she gripped the wheel. While Sora pondered whether he should ask her what was wrong now or wait until they got home, Kairi spoke.

“Hey Sora, how do you feel about Xehanort?” Her voice was light but she stared straight ahead, and Sora couldn’t tell if that was what was bothering her, or if she was trying to distract herself.

“I think he’s a pretty great director. I mean, it’s clear that he’s put a lot of time into the staging and musical direction. I don’t really know anything about him as a person, but I like him well enough.” Sora had a lot of respect for directors. They moved all the parts to make the music happen. Sure, the singers and players were the talent, but the director pulled all the strings. Sora couldn’t even imagine the work that went into it, and he was incredibly grateful that those decisions were in someone else’s hands.

Beside him, Kairi inhaled deeply before letting out a forceful sigh. “I think he’s a good director too, but something about him just feels off. I don’t know if I’m overreacting, but,” She paused, focusing on the road. “Never mind. It’s probably nothing.”

Sora felt his concern bleed into his expression. “Kairi, I think you should trust your gut. But, I don’t think anything bad is going to happen! You’ve got me, and everyone else here. We aren’t going to let anything happen to you, or anyone else. Okay?”

Kairi sent a small smile Sora’s way before turning back to the road. “You’re right. Just, we can never be too careful. I wish things were better in this industry but that's showbiz I guess.”

“I’m sorry things are like this. I wish you didn’t have to worry about shit like this. You should be able to just do your job and not worry about which directors have secret reputations as predators. It sucks!”

“I know you would fix everything if you could, Sora. But remember, you should be careful, too.”

Sora didn’t have an answer for that, so they rode home to the sound of traffic and the volume low on a recording of Madama Butterfly.

\---

Sunday afternoon found Sora and his new band of friends at Waffle House once again. Kairi talked about her church job while the other sympathized. The life of a singer required church work in some capacity, and most everyone had experience both good and bad church jobs. 

“The pay is so terrible for what I do, it’s like I don’t have two degrees! I’d find somewhere else but I’ve been there so long and the choir just adores me. Well, to be honest, I love them too,” she lamented. 

“I agree,” Xion said after a gulp of orange juice. “Sometimes it seems like so much work for such a small reward. But, think about how much you’re giving to them. Those old folks only have so much time left here, and you’re spending your time with them. I know money doesn’t grow on trees, but it sounds like you’re doing a good thing there.”

The others nodded in agreement, and Namine made a “mm!” sound like she had something she wanted to say through her toast. 

“Sorry to change the subject,” Namine said, scrolling on her phone, “but has anyone seen the latest discourse on that classical singers Facebook page?”

“Oh god, no,”Xion groaned. “What are they arguing about now?” They leaned into Namine’s side to look at her phone, looking for the post Namine was talking about. Sora briefly wondered if something was going on there. Not that it mattered, since he and Riku were holding hands under the table. 

“Y’all really will not believe this. So this one guy just posted that singers should always bring an iPad with PDF copies of their music to auditions. Like, what the fuck?”

“God those people are so full of shit,” Roxas groaned, “like every singer can afford a fucking iPad to haul around to auditions. If I could leave that group and find what I needed somewhere else, I would.”

Riku looked up from his waffle, “Pretty soon people aren’t going to know what it’s like to open an ancient score from the music library and get hit with that musty old book smell. It’s all about PDF’s and IMSLP these days.” He gazed into the middle distance, nostalgically. Sora beamed up at him.

Roxas looked at Riku with an openly disgusted look, “Okay, that’s gross please don’t talk about old book smell with that face on.”

When they first met, Sora had thought that Roxas genuinely didn’t like Riku. But when he brought his concern up to Roxas after rehearsal one day, Roxas just laughed and explained he bonded by teasing people. Sora felt relieved, but now he was in a position where he was never sure if Roxas was saying his real opinion around Riku or if he was just trying to get a rise out of him. Deep down, Sora really hoped he was lying now, because old book smell was one of his favorite things in the world. 

“I...I really like the smell of old scores too,” Sora said much to Roxas’ chagrin, “It just feels so cool like, how many people looked through those scores and studied them? Like, have I ever touched the same score as someone famous?”

“Sora, I don’t think we can be friends anymore,” Roxas said with utmost sincerity. Xion started to chuckle beside him.

“What’s wrong with liking old book smell,” Sora whined. “Am I old now? Do I no longer understand the youth?” 

Xion was full on laughing now, “You’re like that meme of the old man with the skateboard,” they struggled to breathe through their laughter, “but instead of a skateboard, it’s a pile of yellow, tattered scores!”

“Hold on, aren’t you guys only like, four years younger than us?” This discussion had clearly struck a chord with Kairi as well.

The discussion devolved into childish insults and generally speaking way too loud even for a Waffle House.

“So it’s been about 2 weeks and we still haven’t managed to get the others to hang out with us," Kairi said as if she hadn't just been shouting. "And I was thinking, maybe we should have a party? Rope people in with alcohol?”

“Oh I’m absolutely down with that,” Roxas said before downing his third coffee. 

“That would be fun,” Sora bounced in his seat. “I really want to get to know everyone else.” 

Namine smiled at him almost fondly, “It’s like your personal goal to just befriend everyone you meet, isn’t it?”

“Yep,” Sora leaned across the table with a hand next to his mouth as if to keep something secret, “and making connections is never a bad thing in this business.”

Xion smirked, “Oh, so we’re all actually business opportunities to you?”

Sora waved his hands frantically, “No, no, no! I’m just saying, getting to know people means they may recommend you for jobs in the future. And hey, how do I know you guys aren’t using me, since I'm a much older and more experienced singer?”

Xion threw a hand up to their mouth, feigning confusion. “What? I would never even think of such a thing!” They turned to Namine and giggled. Yeah, something was definitely going on there. But Sora could figure it out at the party that they were most definitely having.

“It’s okay, I promise I’ll remember you all when I’m famous!”

“Alright so we’re all down for a party,” Kairi meant business when it came to planning events. “But do you think Terra and Aqua would come, Riku? Or Larxene? You’re the only one who talks with her it looks like.” Kairi turned to Riku, who appeared to be thinking hard.

“Look, I don’t know about Larxene. She’s a little...how should I put it? Competitive. Not exactly the nicest person but I feel like she could get down to party?”

“Riku, focus.”

“Right, right, Terra and Aqua will definitely come if I ask them! Oh and probably that Ventus guy, too, I think they’re all friends.”

“Awesome!” Roxas and Xion high-fived, starting a chain reaction around the table. 

Sora couldn’t wait until the weekend. Both his stomach and heart were full. Not every cast could make friends as easily as this, and his budding relationship with Riku was a huge bonus. In that moment, it felt like nothing in the world could possibly go wrong. Sora gave Riku’s hand a gentle squeeze, and yeah, everything was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're halfway through! i hope yall are enjoying this as much as i am, and hopefully ill have another chapter out before break ends!


	6. Riconosci in questo amplesso

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im very sorry that the actual party is not in the chapter, but there is a lot of soriku fluff so i hope yall can forgive me. it will definitely be the focus of next chapter though!

Sora yawned loudly, encapsulating the mood of everyone in the room. Sora, Riku, Kairi, and Olette had all come together Tuesday night to plan the party they would be hosting on Friday. It was Kairi and Sora’s party, really, but the other two had gotten roped in by association. It was nearing 11pm and Sora hadn’t remembered spending this much time on party planning before. But, it had been a long time since he’d hosted a party, way back in undergrad. He winced at the memory of cleaning up the night before, and a grad student who was so trashed she couldn’t remember where she lived to get home. Sora didn’t drink very much after that. It was bad for the voice, after all. 

Riku’s voice interrupted his memories, returning him to the present. “Okay so we’ve decided on tequila, a case of beer, and two bottles of wine, right?”  
The other three nodded in agreement as Riku double checked the notes he had taken. Riku seemed to take everything seriously, no matter how trivial it might seem to others. “Alright, and Sora, you wanted to make a cheese plate?” Sora acknowledged him with an “mm-hmm” sound. 

“Perfect,” Riku mumbled as he scribbled something down. “So that leaves Kairi and Olette to the decorating, which I’ll leave you two to figure out.” 

Olette grinned, taking Kairi’s hand. “This is going to be so much fun!” She exclaimed. “We get to be the students for once instead of the teachers!” 

Kairi laughed warmly, “My choir is going to be so jealous! Well, if they knew, that is. Thanks for helping guys, I really appreciate it.” She covered her mouth as she yawned. “But, I think it’s time for me to go to bed now. I have a make-up lesson to teach at 11 tomorrow,” She groaned loudly. “Oh right, Sora? Is it okay if Olette stays over? I would have asked earlier but usually I don’t have to ask,” Kairi chuckled.

“That’s fine! I was actually, uh, going to go over to Riku’s place after this anyway.” Sora glanced at Riku nervously, like he might have changed his mind since they had talked about it. Riku just smiled at him, unaware of the anxious thoughts running through Sora’s head.

“Well, you two have a good night!” They all exchanged pleasant goodbyes, and Sora didn’t miss Kairi’s wink in the commotion. 

The wink reminded Sora of why he was nervous to spend the night with Riku in the first place. On one hand, he was excited to go to sleep cuddling and wake up to Riku’s sleepy morning face. And of course, make out somewhere in there. But on the other hand, he was worried that Riku might be expecting to have sex and Sora certainly wasn’t ready for that yet. He knew that communication was key but he really didn’t want to discuss it over text. And what if Riku got offended when Sora asked? He took a deep breath as they got in the car and reminded himself of Kairi’s words before their first date. If Riku really had a problem with it, then he wasn’t the right guy.

\---

Riku fumbled with his keys in the dark for a moment outside the Airbnb. Sora thought it was charming that someone who moved so gracefully on stage could still be clumsy sometimes. With a click, the key finally slid in and then Riku was opening the door, gesturing Sora inside.

Sora had been over a few more times since Wednesday, but he hadn’t seen the bedroom yet. Riku started to head to the back of the apartment, towards the bedroom, and Sora felt his blood run cold.

“Um, Riku? Could we talk before we go to bed?” 

Riku stopped and turned around quickly, a worried expression on his face. “Yeah, is everything okay?”

Sora nodded but didn’t look him in the eye. “Yeah, um, let’s just sit down over here.”

Sora moved towards the couch in the front room, and Riku followed. When they were both seated, Sora took Riku’s hands in his own.

“Riku, I really like you. To be honest, I haven’t felt this way in a long time and that kind of scares me.” Sora rubbed his thumbs over the backs of Riku’s hands, looking at them instead of Riku’s face. “That’s not a bad thing really, I think it’s special. I really want to spend the night with you, Riku, but that’s all I want to do. I don’t want to rush into something physical,” his voice started to waver and he finally looked up. “Is that okay?”

Riku’s face was filled with nothing but love, and not judgement as Sora had feared. “Of course it is, Sora. If I’m being honest, I really wasn’t expecting anything to happen tonight either.” Relieved, Sora curled into Riku’s side as he wrapped an arm around Sora’s shoulders. “I would never want you to do something you weren’t ready for, I want you to know that. You make me happy and I want to spend time with you in any way I can. We’ll only move as fast as you want to, okay?” 

Sora nodded into Riku’s chest, worried he might start to cry if he spoke. Riku rubbed a hand reassuringly up and down Sora’s arm, making him feel safe. He could sense that Riku was a genuinely good guy unlike some of his exes, but conversations like these still made him nervous. He was thankful for Riku’s consideration, and he leaned up to give Riku a gentle kiss. Sora didn’t miss the way Riku’s eyes crinkled as he smiled.

“Want to get ready for bed, then?” Sora nodded, and they got up off of the couch to head to the bedroom.

While Riku brushed his teeth in the bathroom, Sora sat down on the bed which he noticed had been made up neatly. He felt his heart warm at the thought of them making it together in the morning. There was a large landscape painting above the bed, and Sora wondered idly if Riku had something profound to say about it.

Once they had both brushed their teeth and changed into pajamas, they settled into bed facing each other. It was dim with only a lamp on the nightstand lighting the room. Riku ran his thumb down the side of Sora’s face before tilting his chin up and slotting their lips together. This kiss was long and slow, as if they were savoring each other. Sora came up for air grinning.

“I’m really glad I met you, Riku.” Sora carded his fingers through Riku’s hair. His heart constricted as Riku closed his eyes and hummed at the sensation. Three words wanted to tumble out of his mouth, but Sora held fast. It was true that Sora liked Riku far more than he could have predicted in such a short time, but that didn’t mean that what he felt was love. Sora hoped that Riku would stick around long enough for Sora to get the chance to say it, though.

A few kisses later and the light was out, Sora turned away from Riku in order to be spooned. His heart felt full as Riku’s breathing slowed, arm still around Sora’s waist. He wondered what he had done to be here with such a beautiful and intelligent person. Just a few short weeks ago he had become aware of Riku’s existence from Kairi’s old picture, and now here he was, wrapped up in the same man’s arms. It was luck, he decided, and drifted to sleep with puffs of air tickling the back of his neck.

\---

In the morning they woke slowly, trading soft and quiet kisses before Riku decided to brush his teeth. Sora stayed in bed trying to savor the moment. The sun filtered in through the curtains bathing the room with light, and the bed was comfortably warm and not hot. He took in a deep breath, as if he could bottle up the air in the room and save it in his lungs. He really, really hoped that they would see each other again in New York.

\---

It was true that Sora didn’t usually cook, but that didn’t mean he was completely hopeless. He’d seen his share of cooking YouTube videos, and putting together a cheese plate wasn’t really cooking anyway. So while Kairi and Olette started to put up decorations, Sora was in the kitchen trying to arrange a few different meats and cheeses on a large wooden serving plate that Kairi had laying around. It was a few hours before the party would begin, and they were all getting ready. Riku was helping wherever he could, mostly hanging things wherever the girls asked him to. 

Sora looked up from his handiwork to see that the living room was beginning to look like party central. Streamers hung from the corners of the ceiling along with a banner proclaiming “Good Luck This Tech Week!!!”, and Olette was fiddling with a speaker that also had a strobe light function which lit up the room with flashing red, blue, and green. Seeing everyone working together reminded Sora of a song he learned in Sunday school, about making new friends and keeping the old. 

“Whoa,” Sora breathed, “You guys, this is awesome! Where did you even find this stuff?”

Olette looked up from the speaker to respond, “Most of it is from Dollar General, but Kairi made the sign. Doesn’t it look great?”

“Of course it does!” Sora walked into the room to get a closer look. Kairi had drawn what looked like confetti around the words in all different colors. Sora was hit with a wave of nostalgia that almost made him tear up. 

Kairi had always been the kind of person to give homemade gifts, and anyone could see the love that went into them, regardless of the skill. It was just a banner on the wall, but to Sora is showed part of Kairi’s kind and giving nature. The way she wanted to do things for other people like throw a party or make an encouraging sign. It was a part of Kairi that Sora wanted to protect, to keep safe from all of the bad things in the world that she had or could experience. He knew it wasn’t possible, that she was capable of taking care of herself. But when Kairi walked into the living room, Sora pulled her into a bear hug.

“Whoa there buddy,” Kairi seemed surprised but she put her arms around Sora, patting his back.

“Yeah! Just, thanks for doing all of this,” Sora mumbled. “I know everyone’s going to love it.”

Kairi pulled back and smiled, “It’s no big deal, I like doing this kind of thing! I haven’t had a reason to in a while, and this seems like the perfect time.” She stepped back from Sora, “After this weekend it’s going to get so crazy with the tech crew and orchestra, we won’t have time for stuff like this.”

“I know, I guess I’m just saying that...I’m glad we’re friends, and I’m really happy that I took this gig. FaceTime and Skype just aren’t the same.” Sora felt his eyes get misty, and Kairi chuckled.

“You’re getting sappy on me Sora, did you start drinking already?” Kairi joked as she headed across the room to hand more streamers to Riku to be hung. Sora opened his mouth to defend himself, but thought better of it and returned to the kitchen to finish arranging the food and drinks. 

A few minutes later, Sora felt strong arms snake around his waist. He leaned back into them and tilted his head back to see Riku, who leaned down to place a kiss on his forehead. Sora giggled like a love-struck teenager before he turned around to give Riku a real kiss.

They pulled away grinning before Sora asked, “Ready for the hangover tomorrow?”

“I don’t really drink,” Riku answered thoughtfully, “but this is a special occasion so I might have a little bit. Definitely not enough to get hungover, though. Besides, if you drink water like you’re supposed to you won’t get hungover in the first place.”

“Oh yeah, I guess that’s true,” Sora mused, “although it’s been so long I’d probably get hungover from just one drink!”

“Well then, I’ll make it my responsibility to keep you properly hydrated and we’ll see who’s right in the morning.”

Sora gathered his face into the most serious expression he could muster. “My life is in your hands,” he said, placing a hand dramatically over his heart.

Riku placed his own hand on top of Sora’s before pulling it to his lips and kissing Sora’s knuckles. “You can put your trust in me, sir,” Riku said with an equally serious expression, and suddenly they couldn’t keep their laughter in. 

Then Kairi threatened to come separate them if they couldn’t focus, and it was back to party preparations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like i should be giving you classical music recs, so heres a piece ive had on repeat while writing this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=at9gM8Xn58s


	7. Dove sono i bei momenti

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here it is, the party! some fun stuff, some cute stuff, some sad stuff. i updated this fic a few chapters ago with a "implied/referenced sexual assault" tag, and that comes into play in the last section of this chapter and will come up again next chapter. it is not at all graphic but i just wanted to warn yall!

Kairi’s living room had been transformed from a place for a sensible adult to host guests into a mini frat house. From the kitchen doorway Sora could see all of their cast-mates talking and having fun through the flashing lights and music playing at a reasonable volume. Tech week started in two days, so it would be irresponsible to shout over music. Sora smiled at the memories of times when he certainly didn’t take so much precaution. 

It had been about two hours since the party started, and Sora was incredibly pleased that everyone had turned up. Even Larxene had agreed to come once she heard there would be free alcohol. And at the last minute, Sora had invited the collaborative pianist, Vanitas, because he was about the same age as Terra and he looked a bit lonely to Sora. He had seemed intimidated by the offer at first, but when Sora mentioned they would be supplying alcohol he immediately agreed. Sora figured that was probably the best thing alcohol had to offer. It brought people together regardless of their differences. 

Against all odds, Ventus had managed to herd everyone together into a game of Cards Against Humanity. This was usually a difficult endeavor, as it required several people to stay on task instead of getting distracted by talking to each other. But Sora reminded himself that the important part was to have fun, and if someone was too busy to take their turn, that was alright. They had been playing for a while now though and people were starting to become bored, so Sora had offered to make shots for those that wanted to partake.

In the kitchen, Sora opened the refrigerator and pulled out the lime wedges he had sliced earlier. It was completely unreasonable to drink tequila and not have lime and salt on hand. Which is to say that Sora had done this before and deeply regretted it. He had never had a good experience with tequila, which could be blamed on the drink itself but was probably due to Sora’s inability to understand that he was small and couldn’t drink as much as bigger guys. Two Finger tequila should be illegal either way.

Some people were sipping on beer or wine, but it didn’t really have a college party feel without a round of shots. He started filling up Kairi’s shot glass and dumping a shot into seven Red Solo cups. These were essential party tools. When he finished, Sora started calling people into the kitchen. Larxene stumbled in first, looking like she must have pre-gamed. Roxas and Namine came in next, Xion following just to watch them take it while they sipped on a wine cooler. Lastly came Riku, Ventus and Vanitas, who appeared to have become fast friends through the card game, although it looked like they were having an argument. 

Salt-shaker in hand, Sora began handing out lime wedges and cups. To complete the ritual, he shook some salt onto each hand and held his cup out to toast.

“Here’s to a great performance,” Sora called out and then everyone was clunking their cups together and tapping them on the kitchen counter.

A few of them coughed, and Sora felt his eyes water as he sucked on his lime. A brilliant idea struck him, and he positioned the lime peel over his teeth to make a fruit peel smile and turned to grin at Riku, who burst into laughter.

“Wait, guys,” Riku said between gasps of breath “look at Sora’s mouth!”

Everyone started laughing in the way that people who are drinking do when something that’s only a little funny becomes ridiculous, and Larxene seemed reduced to tears.

“You look so fucking stupid,” She managed to choke out before having another laughing fit. 

“Pft, what are you, a kid,” Vanitas quipped before meeting eyes with Larxene. It seemed like the start of another friendship and Sora was glad, even if it was at his expense.

A few of them traipsed back into the living room, but Sora stayed in the kitchen to clean briefly. The dreaded after-party cleanup could be avoided if one just cleaned up things as they happened. Sora turned to Riku who was wiping up a spill on the counter and smiled. Riku looked over and planted a soft kiss on Sora’s forehead and Sora melted.

“How’d that shot go down,” Riku asked jokingly.

“Ugh,” Sora spat, “so disgusting. That’s my one shot for tonight, I’ll stick to beer thank you!”

“Hey, at least you got a lime out of it!”

Sora pouted, “I don’t even like limes that much. Like key lime pie, what’s the purpose of that?”

“It’s funny, sometimes I eat a whole slice of key lime pie and think it was cheesecake. But like bad cheesecake, not the good kind,” Riku’s eyebrows furrowed. “And then someone tells me they loved eating the key lime pie and it’s like, God, that’s why this cheesecake tasted so fucking awful,” Riku’s voice rose as he continuted to rant.  
Sora was absolutely in love with the way Riku’s cheeks had seemed to redden in the past few minutes. He concentrated on Riku’s face as he talked, and something dawned on Sora.

“Hey Riku,” Sora placed a hand gently on Riku’s cheek. “Could it be that you don’t drink much because you’re actually a lightweight?”

Sora’s palm heated up as Riku started blushing and turned his head bashfully. His lips were pressing into Sora’s hand as he mumbled, “Is it that obvious?”

Sora felt his heart absolutely melt at the sight of Riku being so embarrassed. 

“Oh honey, it’s okay I’m not judging you,” Sora soothed, before freezing as he realized he had used a pet name. “Uh, I mean, I’m sorry that kind of just slipped out-”

“Is it,” Riku interrupted before closing his mouth abruptly. He looked nervous and Sora wished he could go back to 30 seconds before and just not say that. “Is it bad that I kind of liked it when you said that?”

“Uh,” Sora’s heart beat faster. “No? I mean, it really just slipped out I know not everyone likes pet names and we haven’t even talked about it I didn’t even ask if you liked that kind of thing and then-” 

Riku clumsily put his hand over Sora’s mouth to stop his rambling. “Shhhh. It’s okay. I didn’t think I was a pet name person but for some reason when you said it I got kind of warm and fuzzy.”

Sora let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. 

“But, definitely don’t say it in front of the others. Also, even if I hated it, I wouldn’t have been made at you for it.”

“I’m glad,” Sora said quietly. And then, “We should go back to the others before they start thinking things they shouldn’t.”

Riku nodded his head in agreement and they went back into the living room, both of their faces warm.  
\---

An hour later and most people were chatting, although with Kairi’s help Roxas had pulled up a vine compilation on the television. Riku had been talking with Terra for a while in the kitchen and Sora decided to join them, but then he noticed Larxene hanging off of Aqua on the couch on the other side of the room and decided to go help.

As he got closer, he realized Larxene was crying. Yeah, she had definitely been drinking a lot earlier. Sora hadn’t been paying close attention earlier but she must have had a few more after their earlier shot round. Either way, he needed to make sure she was just being a sad drunk and that something hadn’t happened to her.

“Hey, are you doing okay?” Sora asked as he sat down on the couch next to Aqua. Larxene sniffled loudly as Aqua turned her head and whispered, “She’s just drunk, don’t worry.”

“I’m not that drunk,” Larxene slurred indignantly. “It’s just, my best friend moved a couple of months ago and I miss her. We were like, best friends. Like, I always hung out with her and her brother and we can’t do that anymore. It’s just not the same.” Her eyeliner must have been a high grade of waterproof, because although her bottom lid was lined, it wasn’t smearing at all through her tears.

“I know how that feels,” Sora said quietly. Somehow, he felt guilty. Had Kairi ever gotten drunk and cried like this when Sora’s career had taken off? When he just couldn’t take the time off to visit even though they had spent every break in graduate school together? He felt his own eyes water with empathy as he reached out to hold Larxene’s hand. “Even though things are different, I’m sure she still cares about you as much as she did before.”

“Sora’s right,” Aqua chimed in. “Sometimes Terra and I were really far apart from each other for a long time because of work, but we never stopped loving each other. If you guys are best friends, I’m sure you’ll still get to hang out again just like you used to.”

Larxene seemed to have calmed down, nodding quietly, “We still text each other a lot. Do you think that’s good?”

“Of course,” Sora said. “That means you two haven’t forgotten each other. You’ll always have each other in your heart! And,” he paused as he remembered his own worries about friends forgetting him as he traveled, “I bet she sometimes gets just as worried as you. I bet if you talked to her about it, you guys would understand each other better. Don’t do that right now, though,” He cautioned hastily. Sending a garbled text message was probably not a great idea right now. “Hey, do you want me to grab some water real quick? And you guys can watch the vines?”

Larxene brightened visibly and started to sit up, “I love watching those! People are so stupid on there.” Of course that’s what she liked about them. “Sora,” she grabbed Sora’s hand as he started to stand up. “Thanks for being nice to me. I know I’m kind of a bitch, but I’m not a bad person. I’m glad I came here tonight.”

Sora grinned, “I’m glad too. I’m gonna go get that water for you now.”

\---

Back in the kitchen, Sora poured a cup of water for himself as well. Riku was telling Terra a story about a summer program he had been in. Sora couldn’t help but overhear as he gulped down another cup of water.

“And that’s where I met Kairi,” Riku was saying. Sora remembered Kairi telling him she had met Riku at that program in Berlin. “There was this horrible coach there, he kept making passes at the female singers. It was so gross. And well, when it came to Kairi, it was obvious what he wanted.”

Sora’s stomach dropped. “Sorry to interrupt but, um, what are you talking about?” Riku hadn’t had anything after the tequila but it was clear he was still a little tipsy. 

Riku smiled when he saw Sora. “Oh, I was just telling Terra about how I helped Kairi in Berlin.”

It felt like all of Sora’s limbs were frozen. “What were you helping her with,” it was a question but Sora’s voice was shaking and his tone didn’t go up at the end of the sentence. He didn’t know this story. He didn’t even know that Kairi had even met Riku until a few weeks ago. She had certainly never mentioned anything bad happening at the program.

Terra sensed that the air had changed and he tried to change the direction of the conversation, “Riku, maybe you should let Kairi keep that story to herself.”

Confused, Riku looked back and forth between the two men. If he sensed that something was wrong though, he didn’t show it, because the next thing he said was “Didn’t she tell you? She was getting assaulted by that coach and I pulled him off of her.”

“No,” Sora said, dropping his empty water cup. “No, she didn’t tell me about that.” His voice was almost level but suddenly he was furious. 

There was a look of deep concern on Terra’s face. He looked over to Sora whose hands were balling into fists. “Sora, this isn’t the time,” he whispered over Riku’s head. “You can figure it out tomorrow. Don’t do anything rash because you’ve been drinking.”

Sora nodded solemnly, and Riku looked just as lost as ever.  
“Did I do something wrong,” Riku asked in a small voice. The truth was, he had. He really shouldn’t have told that story to anyone, but Sora knew that he had been drinking. And at the end of the day, it sounded like Riku had done a good thing, he just wasn’t thinking straight. As for Kairi, Sora would think about that in the morning. 

Sora took Riku’s hand and tried to collect himself. “No,” Sora shook his head, “but don’t tell that story to anyone else, okay? Let me get you some water.” 

“Good idea,” Terra said, and started telling Riku a story about him and Aqua to distract him.

After handing Riku a cup of water, he brought another cup back into the living room for Larxene. She seemed to be back to her usual composure, and gulped down the water. Sora sat back down on the couch next to Aqua, and started watching the TV as a video titled “classical music fails” began to play. It had been several years since Kairi had gone to Berlin, back in undergrad. Why hadn’t she told Sora what happened? He began to feel worse about their entire relationship. What a shitty friend he was, that his best friend hadn’t even called or asked for help in a situation like that. And then he just fucked off to perform and forget about all the friends he claimed to care about so much.

People around him began to laugh as someone on the screen played an obviously wrong note. Sora smiled, but he felt a tear slip down his cheek. What the hell was he supposed to do now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i told yall there would be plot! i promise that nothing too bad is going to happen, but as with all stories there is going to be a conflict and a resolution. please trust me these next few chapters, and i hope you'll enjoy the ride.


	8. Deh vieni, non-tardar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just finished my graduate auditions last week!! but now i have opera in real life to worry about 
> 
> sitzprobe - a rehearsal with the orchestra where everyone is sitting  
wandelprobe - a rehearsal with the orchestra where the singers are doing the staging
> 
> warning for non-graphic talk about assault. if u want to skip, stop at "sora reached out a hand," and pick back up at "im so sorry"

It was difficult to sleep that night, even with Riku’s warmth beside him . Riku had been out like a light the minute they got into bed, and he didn’t seem at all disturbed by Sora’s tossing and turning. Night turned into early morning, so he gave up on getting a full night’s sleep and wandered into the kitchen. As he started to fill a glass of water, he heard a door close and footsteps padding down the stairs. Sora turned to see Kairi walk into the kitchen while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

“How’d you sleep,” Sora asked. It was early for him, but Kairi was used to teaching early morning classes. 

Kairi groaned in response. “I slept fine, but I feel awful now that I’m awake.”

“Yeah, I feel that,” Sora said with a chuckle.

Kairi let out a huge yawn and moved toward a cabinet, pulling out a bottle of ibuprofen. Sora sipped from his water as Kairi swallowed two tablets completely dry. Suddenly, she grinned and asked, “Do you want to go to Biscuitville?” 

“Oh hell yeah,” Sora answered almost immediately. He had to take advantage of the local cuisine when he could. “Should we wait for the others, though?”

“Nah,” Kairi shook her head. “We’ll just get extra to bring back for them.”

“Okay, sounds good,” Sora said, although anxiety bubbled in his stomach. 

\---

The drive through wasn’t that far from Kairi’s house, and with the Biscuitville acquired, Sora and Kairi pulled back into her driveway. The others would probably still be asleep, and Sora wondered if he should just say something about last night. The car was off, but Sora’s hands still gripped the wheel. 

“You look worried, what’s up,” Kairi asked after a long sip of her Cheerwine. “Did something happen last night?”

“Yeah, you could say that,” Sora sighed. “Kairi, I feel like I’ve been a bad friend. I’m sorry I haven’t been there for you when you needed me.”

“Sora…” Kairi placed her styrofoam cup back into the cup holder. 

“I thought that we were still such close friends, but really, I just fucked off when my career started to take off,” He turned to look out the window, away from Kairi. “I stopped making time to talk to you and we drifted apart and that’s my fault.” He felt tears pricking his eyes, and he wiped them roughly.

“Hey,” she said softly. “Look at me.”

Sora did so reluctantly, tears starting to spill over. 

“That isn’t true at all. I know you don’t really believe that. I mean, look at how many people from school I’m close friends with now. How many, Sora?”

He smiled weakly, “Not many?”

“Honestly, it’s just you. People grow and change, and sometimes people do grow apart and that’s okay. But do you honestly think that we would even be sitting here right now if I didn’t think that you cared about me? That I would let you stay in my house for free so that we could do a job together? If it was anyone else, I would have at least asked for a little monetary compensation.”

Sora had to chuckle at that. He had offered to pay her when they were making arrangements, but she had insisted that she just wanted to see her friend.

“Sora, you are one of the most caring people I’ve ever met. Yeah, we don’t call on the phone every night like we did 6 years ago, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t love each other. I’m not gonna lie, it’s been nice to hang out again like old times. But Sora, we’ve gone on different paths. I’m busy with my career and my students too. It’s okay that we aren’t friends like we used to be. And honestly, who cares about what happened in the past. You’re here right now and we’re making new memories. That’s the whole point of friendship, anyway.”

Sora sniffled and Kairi rummaged in the take-out bags for a napkin.

“Here you go. Do you still feel bad, or do I need to make a whole power point presentation about why you’re still my best friend?”

He laughed, “No that’s okay. There’s still something that’s bothering me, though. And honestly, I don’t know if I should ask you about it or not.”

Kairi nodded slowly, her eyebrows knit in confusion. “Just go ahead. You can talk to me about anything.”

“Riku mentioned something last night, about when you guys met,” He took a deep breath. “It really surprised me. I guess, I thought that if we were really as close as I thought we were, then you would have told me. 

“You’re right, that’s a really tough question,” Kairi’s lips pursed.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, that’s alright. It is Riku’s story, too.”

“He didn’t really go into detail. He just mentioned that there had been an...incident. You don’t have to tell me what happened I just thought that…I just feel shitty that I couldn’t help you. That I wasn’t a good enough friend for you to let me know.”

“There’s honestly not that much to tell,” Kairi blew out a huge breath. “But I’ll tell you. And I’ll start with the fact that I haven’t really talked to anyone about this because truthfully, I didn’t think that what happened was something worth telling. It didn’t have anything to do with you as a friend, Sora.”

Sora reached out a hand, and Kairi took it gently.

“There was this coach there, he was really excellent at his job but he just made people there uncomfortable. He would hit on the singers, stuff like that. I didn’t really think that much of it because hey, that’s opera am I right,” She paused as if waiting for a laugh, but it didn’t come. “We all had individual coachings with him once a week, in addition to all the group coachings and lessons and rehearsals. Well, you know how it works. So one week, near the end, I went into my coaching like usual. He made a pass at me and I ignored it like I always did,” Her voice cracked and she paused. “I don’t even know why I’m starting to cry, it’s not like anything really happened,” She laughed wryly.

Sora squeezed her hand, “Hey, it doesn’t matter how bad it was, it obviously upset you. It’s okay to cry, especially if you haven’t talked about it out loud before.”

Kairi nodded, “You’re right. I just felt so stupid at the time. He groped me and I just completely froze. I always thought that, well if something like that happened to me, I would scream. But I didn’t, I just stood there, terrified. And then the door banged open and he was off of me and Riku was there, yelling. It was so fast, I didn’t even realize what had happened.”

“I’m so sorry that happened to you, Kairi. It must have been really difficult to say it out loud. I’m sorry that I assumed it had anything to do with me.” Sora passed a napkin over to Kairi as she sniffled.

“That’s alright, you didn’t know. And now you do. I didn’t want to tell anyone about it when I got back. Riku and I didn’t even talk about it. He really was a jerk at the time, it surprised me that he would have done anything. I mean, he wasn’t a huge asshole but he was the kind of guy that gossiped about how the other singers weren’t as good as him - that kind of thing. But after that, I knew he had to be a good person.”

“I’m glad he was there, since I couldn’t be. Thank you for telling me, Kairi.”

“You know, it’s kind of funny. I didn’t think that it bothered me much at all, but somehow I feel a little lighter,” Kairi smiled. “I’m actually starving now though, let’s get inside and eat!”

Kairi didn’t know it, but relief was washing over Sora as well. 

\---

The wandelprobe was always the worst, in Sora’s opinion. He hated the stopping and starting, the way the orchestra conductors had no sense of the acting that was going on onstage. The middle of a complicated dance was not the place to stop the singers. And wasn’t that what the sitzprobe was for, anyways? 

But, the thing that separated successful and unsuccessful singers was complaining during rehearsals, so Sora went along with the conductor as though he wasn’t annoyed at all. Larxene didn’t seem worried about reputation at all, her face clearly showing her displeasure at being stopped in the middle of her high C. Next to her, Riku was trying to remain neutral as the conductor asked to start the scene over from the beginning. A few of them had taken bets on what time the rehearsal would end, and it was starting to look like it would be past 1 in the morning. At least tomorrow they didn’t have to come in for makeup until the evening.

While all of this was going on, the two guys working on the lights were trying out as many variations as possible. It was starting to make Sora feel sick seeing the dizzying array of colors and brightness levels, and he was sweating under the thick period costume. Why couldn’t they have gone with something more modern, or have it take place in outer space like the Met always did? A bead of sweat rolled down Sora’s forehead and he suppressed a groan as he remembered that he had makeup on tonight.

It felt like his entrance would never come at the rate this rehearsal was going. It was funny that he and Riku had to play bitter enemies on stage when their relationship was going so well in real life. They were opening in two days and Sora was certain it was going to be perfect, or as perfect as a live performance can be. There would be three shows, and then it was onto the next thing. Sora didn’t have much lined up after this, so he would be going back to New York. Just as he heard his cue, he remembered that he and Riku would go separate ways right after their relationship had begun. 

The rest of the rehearsal passed in an anxious, sweaty blur for Sora.

\---

“So, there’s something we haven’t really talked about,” Riku said through a mouthful of french fries. Tonight’s meeting spot was a bar, so it was time for junk food. Everyone else was tired so it was just the two of them, and when Riku spoke Sora felt his heart drop into his stomach.

“What’s that, exactly,” he said, trying to remain calm.

“Well, opening night is tomorrow. And that means in three days we’ll be going separate ways.”

It was just as Sora had feared. His worry had been voiced out loud so he couldn’t avoid it anymore.

“Um, well, you said you have a place in NYC, right? So, we can see each other there. Right?” Sora hoped his hesitance would be buried under the ambiance. 

“Oh, yeah,” Riku looked surprised. “I just didn’t know if...well if you wanted to keep seeing each other.”

Riku usually seemed sure of himself, seeing him so nervous about what Sora thought of him made Sora’s heart melt. 

“Wait, you were seriously worried about whether I wanted to keep seeing you?”

Even with the dim lighting, it was easy to see that Riku’s face had turned bright red.

“Of course I was worried! Honestly, it feels like I’ve been living a dream these past few weeks. I mean, you’re this gorgeous, talented, caring guy and you’re seriously interested in me of all people? I really was shocked when I found out you were single.”

Sora felt his own face grow red at the praise. “Oh, stop it,” he said although he certainly enjoyed it. “I could say the same about you, Riku.”

Riku took a breath, and then looked Sora square in the eyes.

“Sora, will you be my boyfriend?”

“Of course, Riku. I would love to.”

Boyfriends. They were boyfriends now. And they were going to keep seeing each other after this gig. Sora was positively elated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for sticking with me!! there should only be 2 chapters left if everything goes as planned, which i hope it will. 
> 
> here's one of my favorite trios: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRMOOpqdoPc  
imagine getting stopped in the middle of that


	9. Pace, pace, mio dolce tesoro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the wait everyone! life has been crazy this past month as im sure you all know, but i hope to have the last chapter up very soon. once again, keep the tags in mind and i hope yall will enjoy

It wasn’t Sora’s first time singing Figaro, and probably not his last. But as he waited in the wings for his first entrance on opening night, nerves bundled in his stomach and his mouth went completely dry. At this point in his career, Sora was used to singing with a bad case of cottonmouth. No matter how much water he drank either before or during a show, his mouth always went dry the second he started to sing. 

Sora had prepared for the show by eating a light dinner devoid of dairy. While he had never actually noticed a difference in his singing based on his dairy consumption, it never hurt to be careful before a show. And besides, what if this was the night that it turned out to be true after all? His ruminations were cut short as he heard his cue, took a deep breath, and strode out onto the stage.

It only took a few minutes before Sora’s nerves dissipated and he completely relaxed into the role, moving as naturally as if he was Figaro himself. His every movement seemed less like a stage direction and more like a part of the character. Sora’s ease on stage was one of his strong points. Singing was important in opera, yes, but acting was becoming increasingly important in a world of live broadcasts and film. Sora found it easy to slip into a character and be someone other than himself. It was almost relieving to not be himself for a few hours every day.

Of course, live performances meant that there would be a few mistakes here and there, but nothing too terrible happened. Afterall in a production during college, Sora had completely forgotten the first line of a scene and had stood petrified as the harpsichord continued to roll the opening chord over and over until the graduate assistant called out the line in front of a live audience. He had been mortified but continued on as if he had meant to do that. His teachers always said that if you didn’t make it seem like something was wrong, the audience wouldn’t notice. While Sora had to disagree with that at the time, it was true that the audience didn’t really notice if a word or note was wrong every once in a while. 

The scenes and acts passed by in a flurry as Sora realized he was really enjoying his craft for the first time in a long time. Years, even. He loved his work and he had a great passion for it but tonight it seemed like he was really alive. A lesson he had learned long ago about working in the arts is that burnouts would come, and he would have to work through them. Sora used to really enjoy singing at his church job, just making music for fun. It was technically work but it didn’t feel like it. And really, opera hadn’t seemed much like work either, at least in the beginning. 

Sora used to be eager to learn new roles and operas. The traveling excited him even though it prevented him from keeping a steady job after a while. But somewhere along the line things had changed. Singing had always been the thing that mattered most, but over the years it became the only thing that mattered. It was as if he was wearing blinders, blocking out anything that didn’t involve moving up and moving forward. 

Somehow tonight was different, Sora realized as tears rolled down his cheeks while the curtains came together. These past few weeks had just been fun. Singing with his friends, relaxing, even finding a boyfriend - this is what it was supposed to be about. That was the point of life all along.

But, time didn’t stop for his revelations and Sora jogged out for his bow with his heart thudding in his ears. He was the last one out as he was the lead, and he stood proudly in the center of the stage as he led his colleagues in a company bow. The audience roared with applause and someone even threw some flowers onto the stage. And just like that, the first night was over.

\---

Backstage Sora hugged and cried with his friends, everyone expressing thankfulness. Even Larxene admitted that the show had gone pretty well. Aqua had written individual thank you cards for everyone and Sora began to cry again as he read his.

“Aqua, this is so sweet of you! I can’t believe you really did this for all of us,” Kairi said.

“Oh, it’s really no problem. It was something a teacher drilled into me and I think it’s a pretty nice thing to do,” she smiled gently. “I’m glad I was able to sing with you all. Let’s have two more great shows!” 

Some of the singers let out cheers as others moved to the dressing rooms. Sora felt a presence behind him and turned to see who it was. Riku stood with his hands behind his back, face red.

“Hey, great job tonight! I’m so proud of you,” Sora moved to pull Riku into a hug but he stepped backwards. Confused, Sora looked up at him with his eyebrows drawn. Riku turned away and instead thrust a bouquet at Sora. 

“I never asked if you liked flowers,” Riku said to the wall more than Sora “but I wanted to get some for you anyways.” 

Sora thought that he might just die from seeing Riku so embarrassed. He couldn’t contain the huge grin that spread across his face as Riku slowly turned to look at him with an expression that could only be described as puppy dog eyes.

“Uh, do you like them?” 

Rather than answering out loud, Sora grabbed Riku’s lapels and pulled him down into a passionate kiss. Sora didn’t care if anyone thought it was gross - Riku was his _boyfriend_ and he bought him _flowers_!

“I love them Riku, thank you so much,” Sora said into Riku’s ear. Stepping back he said, “I can’t believe you hid them from me! I don’t even have anything to give you in return.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Riku said with a grin about as big as Sora’s. “Seeing you happy and getting to hear you sing tonight was enough. I’m so glad I met you.”

“Rikuuu, you’re going to make me start crying again!” 

“Okay, okay,” Riku chuckled, “I’m going to head back to the dressing room and change. I’ll see you in a few minutes.”  
“Okay!” Sora held the flowers close as he moved back towards the group which was when he realized they had made a spectacle of themselves. Namine did an impressive wolf whistle while Roxas groaned. If Sora hadn’t been blushing at all before, he was certainly red now. 

\---

After mingling with the others for a few minutes, Sora headed back to the dressing rooms to get out of the stuffy costume he was wearing. He was certain it was going to reek by the final performance, but it wasn’t technically his and therefore not his responsibility to wash. Sora stopped when he heard voices in the dressing room. It was noisy down the hall, but he could still make out the words. He recognized Riku’s voice first. 

“That’s very kind of you, sir. I’m grateful we were able to work together.” 

The other voice was low, and Sora couldn’t make out the mumbling. 

“Oh, um, I’m not sure I understand,” more mumbling from the other man. “That’s, well that’s certainly flattering but I’m going to have to stop you there.”

Sora’s hand froze just inches away from the door handle. His heart seemed to stop too as the mumble grew louder.

“Look, I have a boyfriend and I’m just not interested. I’m sorry.”

Sora’s heart thawed. It was the first time Riku had called Sora his boyfriend! But then, what the hell was going on in there? The gears clicked into place as soon as the other man raised his voice.

“Do you really think that’s going to stop me? I always get what I want.” It was loud enough that Sora could recognize who it was, and his blood ran cold. It was the director. It was Xehanort. 

“What are you talking about-” Riku was cut off at the same time as a loud thud. Certainly not loud enough to be heard down the hall, though. Sora was the only one that could help, and he needed to act now.

As if possessed, he grabbed desperately at the door handle but it only clanked uselessly. Xehanort had locked the door from the inside, the sneaky bastard. There was more commotion in the room as the two men struggled. In Sora’s head it seemed that there were two courses of action here: bang loudly on the door and shout, or kick in the door as a valiant display of chivalry, adrenaline, and lack of forethought. 

Sora stepped away from the door, and then gave a swift downward kick to the door handle. Blood pounded in his ears blocking out the background noise as he reared back for the second blow, heart racing and numb to the pain. On the third kick the door gave way and Sora came tumbling through with it.

“Sora!” Riku’s hair had fallen out of it’s ponytail and he was dressed half in costume and half in street clothes. He was pinned to the ground by Xehanort and surrounded by costumes that had fallen along with the clothing rack. It looked like a chair had also been overturned for good measure.

Sora could barely hear Riku’s shout as he reached out and grabbed Xehanort by the shoulder, slinging him into the wall.

“Get your _filthy fucking hands_ off of my _fucking boyfriend_,” Sora yelled with all the breath support in the world as if his diaphragm, lower back and posture had perfectly aligned to deliver this one sentence.

Xehanort stared up at Sora in a face of utter shock. He almost seemed to be trembling. Sora trembled too as the adrenaline continued to pump through him.

“Do you fucking understand what I’m saying, or do I need to call the cops right now?” 

“I understand,” the man shook, out of breath from the earlier blow. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize-”

“Get the fuck out of here right now, before I change my mind.” Sora stepped back and allowed Xehanort to stumble out of the room.

Suddenly Sora’s senses came back to him. There was a crowd gathering in the hallway and his foot hurt. He sank slowly onto the ground before remembering what brought him violently into the room in the first place.

“Oh my god, Riku! Are you okay?” Sora crawled over to Riku and grabbed the hand that was closest to him. Riku slowly sat up as Sora began to fret over him. “Of course you’re not okay, that’s a stupid question, are you hurt? Riku, please say something.”

“I...I don’t know. He was just talking to me and then suddenly…” A tear rolled down his cheek as he stared at his lap in shock.

Sora wrapped his arms tight around Riku. “I’m so sorry that happened, I had no idea what was going on. I was so scared Riku, I was so fucking scared.” Tears slid down Sora’s face and onto Riku’s shoulder, getting his shirt wet. “I’m sorry I didn’t come in sooner, when I heard you talking I didn’t want to interrupt but then...and the door was locked and I didn’t know what to do. Oh my god, Riku,” Sora’s face became gravely serious. “I kicked the whole door in. We have two more shows and I just kicked down the dressing room door!”

Riku seemed to shake and Sora pulled back to see his face, worried that he was crying. Upon looking at his face it seemed that Riku wasn’t crying at all. Peals of laughter streamed from his lips, growing louder as Sora stared in confusion.

“What’s so funny?”

“Of course you didn’t think about the consequences, you just barreled right in! Sora, I had no idea who was busting down that door and then it turned out to be you. You should have seen the look on his face, he was terrified! Honestly, if you had just knocked he probably would have freaked out and left.”

“Okay, maybe I didn’t think very hard but what was I supposed to do? Just sit back and weigh the choices while you’re getting hurt?”

“I’m glad you saved me, Sora. I’m glad it was you. Thank you.” Riku pulled Sora into a hug. “Come on, let’s get changed and go home. I’m exhausted.”

\---

Once home, Sora and Kairi chatted in the living room over warm tea with honey. Riku had fallen asleep on the short ride home and was currently in Sora’s bed.

“This has probably been the craziest day of my life,” Sora moaned.

“I know,” Kairi chuckled, “and now your wages are going to go to a door replacement! I really can’t believe the trouble you get into.”

“First of all it wasn’t my fault and secondly, you were right about Xehanort. I should have paid more attention to what you said.”

“You just said it wasn’t your fault, so why are you blaming yourself for something you could never have predicted would happen? Don’t be silly. You did what you thought was right, and I think you did the right thing, too.”

Sora took a long sip of tea and swallowed it slowly. “Yeah, you’re right. I just wish it hadn’t happened at all. And where do we go from here? Like, the police or…”

“It’s Riku’s decision really, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Xehanort didn’t show up again. It’s not like he has to be there since we have an orchestra conductor and all. Honestly I wouldn’t be surprised if nothing happened at all. I mean, look at the world today.”

“That’s true,” Sora sighed. “I just hope he’s okay.” 

“He’ll be okay,” Kairi assured. “Maybe not right away, but things weren’t as bad as they could have been because you were in the right place at the right time. Just let him know you’re there for him and try not to turn it into a huge deal. I think the worst thing you could do right now is stress him out about it.”

“Alright, I’ll try my best. Kairi, thanks for being such a good friend.” 

“Of course. You’re my best friend no matter what.”

“I’m glad you told me about this show. I’m glad I came down to see it. I feel like I learned a lot about myself and who I want to be from this whole experience.”

Kairi stood up to collect Sora’s mug which was now empty. “I’m glad you came, Sora. And if I don’t see you again soon I’m going to come find you and force you to take a break.”

“Alright, I’m counting on you!” 

That night Sora dreamed of warm sunshine on his face, the smile of a lover, an embrace and the smell of flowers in bloom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here it is, the chapter that inspired this entire au! i sent this idea to a friend back in august and its changed drastically since then. i really like where it ended up and i hope you do too! the issue of assault in the classical music industry has really come to light in the past few years and i think its important to show that in this story as a real portrayal of what it means to be an opera singer. this story has always been a way for me to sort of vent my frustrations as an opera singer as well as create what i think is a really cool world for these characters. i hope that reading this has been as fun for you as it is for me to write it. and now, onward to the happy ending!
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FMSHRZpVPI  
say what you will about callas, but this is my favorite aria


	10. Contessa perdono! / Più docile io sono

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im so sorry this took so long but here it is, the final chapter! i cant express how happy i am at this fics reception and thank you all for hanging on for this wild ride. i hope that this chapter is everything you could have wanted, and it is extremely sappy and gay so be warned. <3

Somehow, the show’s run ended peacefully. They didn’t really talk much about the sheet now hanging over the men’s dressing room door, or the way the director was out sick for the last two performances. It wasn’t that they didn’t know but people didn’t tend to talk about those things out loud, in public. 

To Sora, it was strange that he hadn’t dealt with anything like this before. Of course he kept up with the news, and how could he not? It seemed like every other piece of news in the opera community was about another famous singer or conductor being accused of assault, fired, singers let go from programs and gigs after coming forward. It had seemed like another world away. Another show, another studio, another teacher. 

A quote from an old teacher kept playing in Sora’s head, about his time at a company starting out. _“Back when I worked there, it happened to everyone. And everyone knew that it would happen to them.”_ So he supposed it wasn’t so shocking that the incident had ended so quietly. Things in the world hadn’t changed so much. Everyone still knew. Everyone except Sora, it seemed. 

All of these thoughts seemed to swirl in Sora’s head even as he packed his bags. He was so lost in thought that when Kairi knocked on the open guest room door, Sora jumped. 

Kairi covered her mouth as she snickered, “Did I startle you?”

“Just a little,” Sora squeaked, his hand over his heart. “What did you want?”

“What, I can’t just hang out with my friend right before he leaves?” Kairi pouted before falling dramatically onto the bed and Sora’s unpacked clothes. 

“That’s not what I meant! And I’m starting to wonder if you don’t want me to leave since you’re laying on the last clothes I need to pack.”

“Who, me? I would never do such a thing.” As if to prove her point, Kairi sat up and started to fold the crumpled shirts. Sora could see that her eyes were shining with unshed tears, but if he said anything too genuine he’d start crying himself.

They traded a few more jokes and jabs and then the last suitcase was packed and loaded into the car. Sora had no sooner closed the trunk than Kairi embraced him, crying and laughing into his chest. He held her back, tears streaming down his chin as they made promises to call more, to visit, to text at least once a week. 

Sora’s eyes were puffy as he started the long drive back to New York.

\---

Sora hadn’t been in New York long before he was back at the building that housed OPERA America, although this time it wasn’t for an audition. He scrolled through his phone, nervous and unsure of himself as he leaned against the building. He was earlier than he needed to be, but the person he was waiting on was usually on the early side as well. Had Sora miscalculated? It wasn’t really a concrete meeting, and maybe he should just go. Maybe words were just words and people said “We’ll meet up soon!” as something to say rather than a serious request. Just as Sora was deciding to leave, a familiar figure strode out of the front door and suddenly his worries dissipated. 

“Riku!” Sora moved without thinking and barreled into Riku in a hug that almost caused both of them to fall.

Riku started to laugh as he wrapped his arms around Sora. “You’re here! I didn’t know if you would come or not, it was kind of last minute and I turned my phone off for the audition and-”

Sora cut him off with a kiss before saying,“Of course I came!” And then softer, “I wanted to see you.”

“I missed you,” Riku said quietly.

While Sora had been back in New York for over a month, Riku was contracted at another program elsewhere, and they hadn’t seen each other in as long. They had texted almost every day, but long distance relationships tended to be awkward upon meeting again. But here with Riku, Sora felt like they had been together just the other day. It felt natural. 

The city bustled around them and Sora was jostled back into the world by a pedestrian pushing past. 

“Oh, are you hungry?” Sora asked as they moved out of the way of foot traffic. “We could get some food, on me?”

“That’d be great actually, I haven’t eaten yet today.”

“But it’s like 2 in the afternoon!” Sora exclaimed.

“Auditions make me nervous, my stomach just shuts down. Won’t digest a thing until the danger has passed,” Riku chuckled. “Are you opposed to Panera? Since it’s right here and all.”

“Oh my god yes, I haven’t been there in forever and I missed their mac and cheese in the bread bowl. Kraft just isn’t the same! Er, I didn’t miss it as much as you, though.”

Riku was laughing and made a grand gesture as he opened the door for Sora and then finally the city felt like home again.  
\---

_two years later_

\---

“Riku, you’re sure everything looks okay?”

Sora straightened his lapels for what was at least the 10th time in the past few hours.

“Yes, Sora, I promise you look fine. And not to detract from that statement but you aren’t the main event here. Everyone’s going to be looking at the brides.”

Sora felt tears prick in his eyes, “I can’t believe it’s already happening.” He sniffled half for effect and half because he really would cry if he didn’t get it together. “I can’t believe my best friend is really getting married.”

Riku rested a hand on Sora’s shoulder, grounding him. “I know, and you’re going to be right there beside her.” 

“Thanks for coming,” Sora smiled up at Riku. “I mean, I know you and Kairi are friends on your own but it’s still nice to be able to bring my boyfriend to a wedding.”

“I’m glad I could be here,” Riku pressed a quick kiss to Sora’s forehead. “Now it’s time to get up there! You’re going to stand there just fine,” He teased. 

“Okay, okay, everything is fine, see you in the sanctuary!” 

As Sora headed to the front of the long hall, he reminisced about the night Kairi had called to give him the news about the engagement. 

Sora had of course thought about weddings before and he had known that eventually he and Kairi would have weddings and get married, but when Kairi called him around a year ago announcing that she and Olette were officially engaged his world shook a little. He was happy for her, of course he was. They were best friends. When your best friend gets engaged, it’s a happy occasion. So then why, after the call ended, had he felt like crying?

It wasn’t like he and Kairi were close geologically, although he had made good on his promise to visit and call more often. And she had been dating Olette for over a year so it wasn’t like he hadn’t known it was coming. But for some reason he hadn’t really processed the idea of Kairi being married, of her having a wife, of her being someone’s wife. Suddenly it was no longer Sora and Kairi, but Sora and Kairi with her wife Olette. It was final. Time was moving and Sora was being pulled along with it. After all, he and Riku had just celebrated their second anniversary not too long ago. 

So when he had answered the phone and heard Kairi’s immediate yell, _“We’re getting married!”_ it felt like his heart sank straight to his feet. When the phone call ended, he paced the apartment in confusion. He was happy, but he started crying and for the first time in a long time, he felt lonely. 

He had told Riku he was going on a McDonalds run, but it was really an excuse to walk for a while and just process the situation. Going somewhere always helped to clear his head. He spent a long hour wandering through the city, thinking about everything. Just because things were changing didn’t mean that he and Kairi wouldn’t be friends anymore, and it didn’t mean that he was being left behind. 

When he walked back into the apartment with a surprise McChicken for Riku, he was able to say _“Kairi’s getting married!”_ with an enthusiasm that wasn’t faked. 

In the present, tears welled in Sora’s eyes as the organ started playing and Kairi walked up the aisle with her father. There probably wasn’t a dry eye in the church. Sora recognized several people in the pews, among them were friends they had made at the fateful opera program two years ago. Roxas and Riku were sitting next to each other, for once being quiet in each other's presence.

The ceremony was relatively brief despite the personal vows Kairi and Olette had written. Sora wondered if it was impolite to sniffle as part of the bridal party, but he did so shamelessly anyway. Suddenly, it was done and everyone was clapping and cheering and they recessed down the aisle and into the parking lot to drive to the reception. It was so special and so mundane, all at once.

\---

The seats for dinner had been planned out in advance, so Sora and Riku were sitting with the rest of the bridal party who were incidentally all men, and Roxas, interestingly. Apparently he and Olette had become friends after that party and he had met her other friends some time ago. Sora delighted in getting to know the other men, whose names he learned were Hayner and Pence. They had met Olette in college, all in the education program together. 

Riku was mostly quiet aside from polite conversation, preferring to let Sora do the mingling although at one point he whispered to Sora about Roxas being awfully friendly with the Hayner guy. Sora made a mental note to tease Roxas about it later when they’d all had a bit more to drink.

And then came the sappiest part of any wedding: the speeches. Sora had prepared some note cards, but he didn’t have a concrete speech written out. Truth be told he had just written down a few pointers from some online guides about writing a maid of honor speech. He clapped and laughed through the parents speeches all while his own anxiety grew as it neared the time of his own speech.

When it was time he walked cautiously up to the podium to avoid tripping, and pulled the note cards out of his breast pocket. He took a deep breath, and began.

“Hi everyone! If you don’t know me my name is Sora, and I’m Kairi’s best friend. I’m going to say a few embarrassing and sappy things about her because that’s my job tonight. Kairi and I met in college, well, in a Waffle House, really. That’s one of my favorite memories of us, eating breakfast food at 11PM and talking about every annoyance of music school,” 

Sora felt his eyes watering and he willed the tears not to fall until the end of the speech. 

“I quickly learned that she is one of the kindest, most caring, most talented, and bravest people in the world. Whenever I was going through a breakup, she was always over with chocolate and movies. When I got my first few rejections she was there to encourage me. And when life pulled us away from each other as adulthood often does, she never stopped being my best friend.”

He cleared his throat to cover up the way his voice was beginning to shake.

“When Kairi first told me about Olette, I had a feeling that she was going to be the one. Mostly because Kairi was worried about moving in too soon.” He paused for laughter. “But when I first met Olette two years ago, it was plain to see why Kairi’s so madly in love with her. She’s such a kind, intelligent and confident person that I can’t see why anyone wouldn’t like her. And she’s pretty indulgent of Kairi’s mischievous side if I’ve been hearing the truth about some pranks that were pulled on your students,” another laugh. 

“I’m so happy that you guys have found each other, and I know you guys are gonna put every straight married couple on earth to shame. I’m not going to pretend to give you advice because I know Kairi’s probably given it to me at some point. I wish you guys all the best the world has to offer,” Sora raised his champagne glass, “so here’s to the happy couple!” 

The last of Sora’s duties fulfilled, he returned back to his seat glowing with pride and tears dripping down his chin.

\---

There was a full night of dancing ahead, but the most important wedding tradition of all was about to happen: the bouquet toss. Sora was a mildly superstitious person. He didn’t walk under ladders, he didn’t keep broken mirrors and he generally knocked on wood after saying things that could tempt fate. So he had kind of been hoping to catch the bouquet to get married next. He and Riku had mentioned marriage on occasion, but there certainly weren’t any engagement rings hidden in the apartment. Sora would know after all, since Riku tended to be terrible at hiding presents. Regardless, he was placing a lot of faith in this flower toss.

As the unmarried guests flocked to the dance floor, Sora got in position. He tried to be as close to the center of the crowd as possible, although he wasn’t really sure how far Kairi could throw. He crouched slightly, preparing to jump, and sent a small prayer to anyone listening above. 

Then the bouquet was in the air and it was just out of his reach as he jumped, but a hand reached behind his and snatched it before Sora could grasp it. He landed on the floor, heartbroken, and turned to see who had bested him.

“Oh my god,” Sora said in disbelief, “Oh my god, are you kidding me? Riku! I cannot believe you!” 

Riku grinned at Sora, bouquet in hand. “Oh, were you trying to catch this? Sorry, but there’s this guy I’m trying to get married too soon.” 

Sora punched Riku’s shoulder, but there was no bite in it. “You are so, so ridiculous and I am so in love with you, you bastard.” 

Riku bent down to give Sora a kiss that he leaned into, at least until there was a soft _whap_ on his shoulder. 

“Hey, this is my wedding so I’m gonna have to ask y’all to get a room, thanks!” Kairi laughed as Sora quickly turned around, mortified.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Sora stuttered. “Actually, hold on a second this-” he gestured to Riku, “-is kind of your fault! If it wasn’t for you, me and Riku would have never met.” 

Kairi rolled her eyes, “Save it for the slow dance. I have to go attend to my _wife_ now, but Sora,” her voice went from teasing to serious. “Thank you for everything. I love you.” 

Kairi leaned in for a hug and Sora embraced her tightly, “I love you too. Now go have fun with your wife!” They both laughed and Kairi was off as fast as her heels allowed.

“So,” Sora turned back to Riku. “You wanna get married?”

Riku’s eyes twinkled, “Yeah, let’s get married.”

Sora’s heart melted and he was so, so thankful that two years ago he had driven across the country for a gig with his best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> riku definitely has been planning a proposal for at least 3 months that involves a fancy dinner and tickets to soras favorite show at the met and a walk in the park afterwards. he has texted kairi to ask for advice about it. 
> 
> if you havent already, check out my other kh fic which features trans riku! also you can find me on twitter im @localsoriku and i make fanart occasionally
> 
> heres my favorite love duet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8i_oNf3J9Y  
(and if you like that, here are the two love solos that go along with it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dakRJyDniw , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8i_oNf3J9Y )


End file.
